Good Sense (Great Books in Philosophy) [Paperback]

Paul Henri Thiry d'Holbach (Author), Anna Knoop (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Great Books in Philosophy | Publication Date: January 2004

This work, originally published in 1772, was intended as a popular digest of the more elaborately developed philosophy presented by Holbach in his magnum opus, "Systeme de la nature" ("The System of Nature", 1770). In 206 very brief chapters, Holbach systematically presents the atheistic challenge to religion, critiquing point by point every contention of religion from the nature of God to the existence of the soul, belief in miracles, heaven and hell, the divine right of kings, the role of the priesthood, and many other points of dogma and tradition.

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About the Author

Paul Henri Thiry, Baron d'Holbach, was born in December 1723, in Edesheim, Rhine Palatinate but was raised in Paris by his uncle Franciscus Adam d'Holbach. Paul Henri attended the University of Leyden, Holland, from 1744 till about 1749. In that year he married his cousin Basile-Genevieve d'Aine. Around 1754 his uncle Franciscus and his father-in-law both died, leaving Paul Henri the barony of d'Holbach and a large fortune.

D'Holbach used his wealth to establish a coterie in Paris for which he became famous. This group included noted intellectuals of the day such as Denis Diderot, Claude-Adrien Helvetius, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Benjamin Franklin, Edward Gibbon, David Hume, and Adam Smith, as well as French nobles and ambassadors from European countries.

D'Holbach contributed articles on chemistry and allied scientific topics to Diderot's ENCYCLOPEDIE. A vigorous opponent of Christianity, he escaped public and political ridicule by publishing his critical views using the names of deceased friends or employing pseudonyms. In 1761 he published LE CHRISTIANISME DEVOILE (Christianity Unveiled) using the name of his deceased friend N.A. Boulanger. His most famous book, SYSTEME DE LA NATURE (The System of Nature), published in 1770 under the name of J.B. Mirabaud, derided religion. LE BON-SENS (Good Sense) was published in 1772 under the name of Jean Meslier. D'Holbach's 1773 SYSTEME SOCIAL (Social System) placed morality and politics in a utilitarian framework. THE SYSTEM OF NATURE and GOOD SENSE were condemned by the Paris parliament and publicly burned.

D'Holbach died on June 21, 1789, in Paris.

Product Details

• Paperback: 248 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books (January 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591021456
• ISBN-13: 978-1591021452
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,730,248 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read!, December 2, 2010

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bentorr09 (Texas) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Good Sense (Paperback)

I'm almost finished with this book & have enjoyed it throughout.

If you've ever questioned organized religion, or had others pose questions to you - this book answers pretty much everything.

Baron knocks so many holes in the whole "divinty" of Christian folklore, it's amazing Christians still exist today, after this book came to be.

If you're studying religion, misanthropy, philosophy - this book is for you.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Positive, Simple, Truths for Life, April 21, 2008

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M. Mcque (IL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Good Sense (Paperback)

D'Holbach, like other enlightenment era philosophers rails against the medieval scholastic war machine of the Catholic Church. For example, Scholastic metaphysical truth is the science of "contradictions", whose impossible task is to understand "unintelligible" senseless words "castles in the air". Assume with him "contradiction implies non-existence" (ironically a medieval scholastic truth) In the science of theology, there (is reification, remember that certain objects necessarily produce in us the sensation of pain, not our perception or beliefs about them) is no progress, since each generation of elitist word sorcerers give " us a picture of God, one of a great chimera, in whose features they never agree, whom each arranges in his own way,and who exists only in their imaginations."(73) The Scholastic metaphysical explanation of the divine produces explanations of things, that are the multiplication of more " words, much more obscure than the things they endeavor to explain.(61) Perhaps, this text would serve as a useful exhortation to post-modern fiction writers, if they are bold enough to be martyrs for the truth or identify with a mirror once in a while. Never mind, go dream of your psychosis sublime . Nota Bena, "Would not society be dissolved and man return to a savage state if everyone were fool enough to be Christ?"