Dlugach T.B. Debate on upbringing (J. J. Rousseau, C. A. Helvétius)

Abstract: This article explores the polemic between the renowned enlighteners Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Claude Adrien Helvétius on the question of upbringing.  How does one raise an enlightened member of society? Rousseau believes that teaching should be conducted individually, leaving the student and mentor out in the nature. Helvétius leans towards collective education. But both believe that the upbringing should take place in a village. Rousseau supports the religious and fairly limited upbringing, while Helvétius is against religion and in support of higher education. The specificity in Helvétius’ understanding of human leads him to paradoxes, analyzed by Denis Diderot. The upbringing means of the Age of Enlightenment are being carefully examined for the first time. The author compares the views of Rousseau and Helvétius on the utmost important factors – religious, anti-religious, moral, educational, and professional. A special attention is given to the paradoxes in thinking that result from Helvétius’ understanding of human being. The author provides explanation to the paradoxes as dialectical contradictions intrinsic to Enlightenment.  

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