Fonti sottovalutate e fonti ignorate della voce 'Polythéisme' dell'Encyclopédie

NICOLI' L

2013-01-01

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Abstract

This paper proposes a re-interpretation of the article in the Encyclopédie on «Polythéisme» based on its sources, which have hitherto been largely ignored (Boureau-Deslandes, Houtteville) or underrated (Warburton, Bayle). These sources are identified, and the author's treatment of them is investigated (quotations, plagiarism, juxtapositions, alterations). The paper thereby aims to make a contribution to the question of the attribution of the article to the Abbé Yvon and brings to light some ideological implications of the eighteenth-century debate on polytheism and idolatry. On the basis of this research and of a short comparison with the entries «Dieux» and «Idole, Idolâtre, Idolâtrie», the paper attempts to demonstrate that the article «Polythéisme» should be considered as belonging to an essentially traditional cultural background.