Condillac and Cleland

Etienne Bonnot de Condillac was a French philosopher and abbe (member of clergy). He wrote the Treatise on the Sensations in 1784 , in line with Locke's idea that all of human experience and knowledge is based on sensation, or that "the processes of the mind could be broken down into original units of sensation." Unlike Locke, Condillac believed that all knowledge is "transformed sensation" and does not provide intuitive knowledge.

Condillac was ordained a Roman Catholic priest and was a member of the Parisian philosophical and intellectual communities, like the French Academy. Condillac also wrote "Essay on the Origin of Human Knowledge," "Treatise on Systems," "Commerce and Government Considered in Relation to One Another." He kept his religious fervor in through the Enlightenment.

Treatise on the Sensations

by Etienne Bonnot de Condillac

Condillac writes that all human cognitions stem from the senses, the primary being touch. He then states that from our sensations we get a feeling of pleasure or pain, creating an impression of our experiences. This impression or judgment is removed from the initial sensation, and makes life more varied. Each person, argues Condillac, has different judgments or impressions and therefore a different life experience. A person will acquire new experiences and sensations, they will find them either pleasurable or painful, and search for others. He says that we are thence the sum of our experiences.

An important piece of the Treatise regards the issue of pleasure or enjoyment. Condillac says "to live is to enjoy, and life is much longer for him who knows how to multiply the objects of his enjoyment." We will also find enjoyment through "memory, imagination, reflexion, passions and hope" in addition to the senses. This is related to the impression and judgment points and the desire to seek more pleasurable experiences.

Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure

by John Cleland

Although I argue that this excerpt is essentially a pornographic publication, I think it is included in the Enlightenment Reader because this fictitious account of a sexual conquest is all about sensations of pleasure and pain. It is related to the Enlightenment mode of the search for pleasure. What I think is interesting about this piece, is that it is written by a man, but from the viewpoint of a woman. It is obviously written from a male perspective though, as it is clear to see his desire for power- power over a woman, power to give her pleasure and pain, and concerned with issues of endowment which is the source of this power to give/receive pleasure and pain. I think it is also written from a female point of view to attribute base desires and the search for sexual pleasure to a woman.

I suggest you read this on your own, because I doubt that there is much need to cover it in class or a tactful way of doing it...

Discussion Questions
Is it surprising that Condillac says "for to live is to enjoy, and life is much longer for him who knows how to multiply the objects of his enjoyment" considering his role in the Church?

Does Condillac account for the reasons (or ways in which) why judgments and impressions are made, how or an experience is deciphered?

Why does Cleland write in the voice of a woman? What does it do for the text? for the reader? What does it say about Cleland?