L'abbé Gabriel-François Coyer, 1707-1782 : un "philosophe" républicain et réformateur au XVIIIème siècle
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Abstract EN:
Born in 1707 and engaged in literature since 1747, coyer was firstley known as a satirist. The frivolity of his initial libels as soon been followed by strong attacks against inequality and a claim to people's right. In 1756, the priest embraced the great "philosophical" ideas of his time. Between 1758 and 1761, along with the philosophers, he fought the supporters of religions and political tradition. Once the victory gained, he was involved in a large reformist movement inspired by the "philosophie" and sometimes even supported by the administration. However, concrete achievments were slow to come and coyer died deeply dissatisfied, in 1782. Coyer's thinking initiate with abstract premices - sensationalism, purified catholicism, social morality - and come to the claim to happi- ness for all. This ideal induce him to elaborate a new political doc- trine, called the democratic republicanism, which was to triumph with the third republic. Waiting for the establishing of a regime of this type, coyer supported reforms to change every field of the human life, in order to regenerate individual, on a physical and moral ground. This is the purpose of the entire enlightment movement and it would eventually lead to give birth to the totalitarian id
Abstract FR:
Ne en 1707 et entre dans la carriere litteraire en 1747, coyer se fit d'abord connaitre comme satirique; a la frivolite de ses premiers libelles succederent de vives attaques contre l'inegalite et une revendication des droits du peuple. En 1756, l'abbe reprit a son compte les grandes idees des "philosophes". Vers 1758-1761, il lutta a leurs cotes contre les defenseurs de la tradition religieuse et politique. La victoire acquise, il participa a un vaste mouvement reformiste inspire par la "philosophie" et parfois soutenu par le pouvoir. Mais les realisations concretes se firent attendre et coyer mourut desabuse en 1782. La pensee de coyer part de premices abstraites - sensationnis- me, catholicisle "epure", morale sociale - pour aboutir a la revendica- tion du bonheur general. Cet ideal le conduit a elaborer, l'un des premiers, une doctrine politique nouvelle, le republicanisme democrati- que appele a triompher sous la troisieme republique. En attendant que s'impose ce regime, coyer prone des reformes destinees a changer tous les domaines de la vie humaine pour regenerer l'individu, physiquement et moralement : cette entreprise est celle de toutes les "lumieres", et porte en germe l'ideologie totalitaire de la revolution et du ving- tieme siecle.