Synopsis
Condorcet's optimistic sketch of human history as a march of reason toward greater knowledge, equality, and the perfectibility of humankind.
Core passage idea
Paraphrase · Public domainHuman history is a story of expanding reason and improving conditions, and there is no fixed limit to how far the species can progress.
It gives the Enlightenment its boldest faith in progress, framing education and science as engines of liberation and equality.
To avoid a bubble
Pair with Joseph de Maistre, Considerations on France.
Reading note
Read it knowing Condorcet wrote it in hiding during the Terror, which makes its hope both moving and worth questioning.
Best paired with
Joseph de Maistre, Considerations on France