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Gabriel Bonnot de Mably (Grenoble, 14 March 1709 – 2 April 1785 in Paris), sometimes known as Abbé de Mably, was a French philosopher and politician. He was born in Grenoble of a legal family, and, like his younger brother, the well-known philosopher, Étienne Bonnot de Condillac (30 September 1715 – 3 August 1780), took holy orders. He was a popular 18th century writer.

Biography

Mably was born to a noble family. His education included a Jesuit college, and early on he pursued an ecclesiastical career, enrolling in a seminary. He abandoned that path to enter the diplomatic corps in 1742. His diplomatic career was a short one, ending in 1746. Afterwords, he focused on scholarly pursuits, for which he became the most known.

Writings

His most known contribution is Entretiens de Phocion, a dialogue first published in 1763, which introduced themes of his mature thought. However, there are two works published posthumously which subsequently were to have a profound effect on the early deliberations on the assembly of the Estates-General in 1789 - an enlarged version of an earlier work (1765) 'Histoire de France' and 'Des droits et des devoirs du citoyen', written in 1758 but Mably held back the manuscript from publication and arranged for his executor to have it published after his death. It appeared in May,1789 to great acclaim despite efforts by the authorities to suppress it by confiscating many copies. Unfortunately, the way the Revolution was conducted later led to the very circumstances that Mably warned against in his book.

His works contributed to the later concepts of both communism and republicanism. He advocated the abolition of private property, which he saw as incompatible with sympathy and altruism, and conductive only to one's antisocial or egotistical instincts. Mably's writings contain a paradox: he praises elitist Plato, but also the enlightened Stoic views on natural human equality. Mably went even further then the traditional Stoic argument about all men possessing a divine spark, as well as progressed beyond the liberal belief in equality before the law, arguing for the equality of needs. His argument that virtue was above the material wealth, criticizing idleness, found rapport with those critical of the inherited wealth and privilege of unworking nobility.

Mably's complete works were published in 15 volumes in 1794-1795, with an obituary/biography by Gabriel Brizard.

List of 18 published works by Gabriel Bonnot de Mably (1709 - 1785)

Parallèle des Romains et des François par rapport au governement (1740)
Lettres à Madame la Marquise de P... sur l’Opéra (1741)
Le droit public de l’Europe fondé sur les traités conclus jusqu’en l’année 1740 (1746)
Observations sur les Grecs (1749)
Observations sur les Romains (1751)
Des principes des négociations pour servir au Droit public fondé sur les traités@ (1757)
Entretiens de Phocion, sur l’introduction de la morale avec la politique, traduits du grec de Nicoclès, avec des remarques (1763)
Réponse de M. Abbé de Mably à M. Abbé Rome (1764)
Observations sur l’histoire de France, Books I - IV (1765)
Observations sur l’histoire de la Grèce, ou Des causes de la Prospérité et des malheurs des Grecs (1766)
Doutes proposées aux philosophes économistes sur l’ Ordre naturel et essentiel des sociétés politiques (1768)
Du commerce des grains (1775)
De l’étude de l’histoire à Monseigneur le prince de Parme Tome XVI du cours d’études pour l’instruction du Prince de Parme, aujourd’hui S.A.R. l’Infant D. Ferdinand, duc de Parme, Plaisance, Gasuelle etc. par M. l’Abbé de Condillac (1775)
De la législation, ou Principes des lois (1776)
Du gouvernement et des lois de la Pologne (1771 or 1776 ?)
De la manière d’écrire l’histoire (1783)
Principes de morale (1784)
Observations sur le gouvernement et les lois des États-Unis d’Amérique (1784)

Posthumous publications of individual works - 1786 until 1794

Observations sur l’histoire de France, nouvelle édition précédée de l’éloge historique de L’auteur par M. l’abbé Brizard (1788)
De la situation politique en Pologne en 1776
Le Banquet des politiques
De l’étude de la politique
Des maladies politiques et de leur traitement
Des droits et des devoirs du citoyen (1789,reprinted in 1793, but written in 1758)
Du commerce des grains
De la superstition
Notre gloire et nos rêves
De la paix d’Allemagne
De la mort de l’impératrice-reine
L’oracle d’Apollon
Des talens
Du beau
Du développement, des progrès et des bornes de la raison
Le compte rendu
La retraite de M. Necker
Du cours et de la marche des passions dans la société

Posthumous Complete works to 1795

Œuvres complètes de l’Abbé Mably précédées nouvelle édition précédée de l’éloge historique de l’auteur par M. l’abbé Brizard, 12 vol., slightly incomplete London edition (1789)
Œuvres complètes de l’abbé Mably, 19 vol.,Toulouse (Sens) & Nîmes (Gaude) edition), (1791)
Œuvres complètes de l’abbé Mably, nouvelle édition; revue, corrigée et augmentée, 19 vols. Toulouse (Sens) & Nîmes (Gaudeedition), (1793)
Collection complète des œuvres de l’abbé Mably, 15 vols. Paris edition (Desbrières), (1794/1795) more complete than previous editions.

Recent Translations in English by Simon de Vries

Concerning the Rights & Duties of the Citizen - Comtal Publications, 2008 - ISBN 0955797403
Letters to Madame the Marquess of P .... on the Opera - awaiting publication.

External links

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Revision as of 17:25, 14 October 2010

Biography

Writings

Further reading

External links