MONTESQUIEU –
Charles de Secondat, baron de Montesquieu — Born 1689 in Bordeaux , died February 10, 1755

Montesquieu was a French social commentator and political thinker who lived during the Era of the Enlightenment. His two most famous books were The Spirit of Laws, and The Persian Letters.

• a. Cultural lion and hero to American Revolutionary War leaders.
• b. A relativist – if knowledge and moral values are bounded by experience (Locke) then one’s beliefs are limited by space, time, place and personal experience.
• c. He advances the idea of perspective. But science is a unifying force amid the relativity of different perspectives.
• d. Sense of tragedy – behaviors have consequences. Linkage between individuals and the societies they live in. Successes cannot be permanent.
• e. Separation ( division) of powers in government is one of his main legacies to America.