Containing essays by leading scholars representing a wide range of disciplines, this Companion offers new perspectives on the French Enlightenment. Clearly organized and easy to use, the volume provides a comprehensive overview of a period that marks the beginning of modern intellectual culture and political life.

This study focuses on Denis Diderot, whose experimentation with presenting critical knowledge exemplifies the Enlightenment's struggle to produce a rationalist critique of all prior knowledge.

An important reassessment of the afterlife of the Enlightenment and its continuing relevance in twenty-first century France.