Sylvain Maréchal (; 15 August 1750 – 18 January 1803) was a French essayist, poet, philosopher and political theorist, whose views presaged

utopian socialism Utopian socialism is the term often used to describe the first current of modern socialism and socialist thought as exemplified by the work of Henri de Saint-Simon, Charles Fourier, Étienne Cabet, and Robert Owen. Utopian socialism is often de ...

and

communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...

. His views on a future

golden age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during wh ...

are occasionally described as ''utopian

anarchism Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...

''. He was editor of the newspaper .

Early life

Born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

as the son of a wine merchant, he studied

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, also known as theory of law or philosophy of law, is the examination in a general perspective of what law is and what it ought to be. It investigates issues such as the definition of law; legal validity; legal norms and values ...

and became a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

in the capital. At the age of 20, he published , a collection of idylls, successful enough to ensure his employment at the Collège Mazirin as an aide-

librarian A librarian is a person who professionally works managing information. Librarians' common activities include providing access to information, conducting research, creating and managing information systems, creating, leading, and evaluating educat ...

. Maréchal was an admirer of

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Republic of Geneva, Genevan philosopher (''philosophes, philosophe''), writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment through ...

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Voltaire (, ; ), was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, philosopher (''philosophe''), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit ...

, Claude Adrien Helvétius, and

Denis Diderot Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a prominent figure during th ...

, and associated with

deist Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin term '' deus'', meaning "god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge and asserts that empirical reason and observation ...

and

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

authors.

Vision

He developed his own views of an

agrarian socialism Agrarian socialism or agricultural socialism is a political ideology that promotes social ownership of agrarian and agricultural production as opposed to private ownership. Agrarian socialism involves equally distributing agricultural land among ...

where all goods would be shared. In ("Fragments of a Moral Poem on God"), he aimed to replace elements of practiced religion with a cult of Virtue and faith with Reason (''see

Cult of Reason The Cult of Reason () was France's first established State religion, state-sponsored secular religion, atheistic religion, intended as a replacement for Catholicism, Roman Catholicism during the French Revolution. After holding sway for barely ...

''). His critique of both religion and political absolutism ( - "Book Salvaged from the Flood", a

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

of the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

) and his atheism caused him to lose his position at the college; Maréchal was forced to live off his literary output. In 1788, he was sentenced to four months in prison for publishing the ("Honest Man's Almanac"). The months were given names numbered one through twelve (for example, March is the first month, listed as "", while February is "". The calendar also replaced the usual figures of a calendars of saints with famous characters (such as

Blaise Pascal Blaise Pascal (19June 162319August 1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, and Catholic Church, Catholic writer. Pascal was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, a tax collector in Rouen. His earliest ...

). Later editions of the ''Almanach'' used the French Republican Calendar. From this moment on until his death he published anonymously - to prevent further prosecutions.

Atheist ideology

During Maréchal's lifetime, atheism was consistently frowned upon by the highly religious people of France. Living in a traditionalist Christian country, he would often write about his thoughts on the church, often critical of the doctrines and beliefs held by the Christians of his time. In his 1799 essay, ''Preliminary discourse, or Answer to the question: What is an atheist?'', Sylvain Maréchal proclaimed that he had no more need of God than God needed him, and proclaimed such an attitude was "true atheism" after rejecting several competing stances. He outright rejected the idea of masters ruling his life, and that included the will of any god. For him, to believe in God is to submit to hierarchy.

Revolution

An enthusiastic supporter of the French Revolution, Maréchal also advocated the defense of the poor. He did not become involved in the conflict opposing Girondists and

Jacobins The Society of the Friends of the Constitution (), renamed the Society of the Jacobins, Friends of Freedom and Equality () after 1792 and commonly known as the Jacobin Club () or simply the Jacobins (; ), was the most influential List of polit ...

, and became instead worried about the outcome of revolutionary events, especially after the

Thermidorian Reaction In the historiography of the French Revolution, the Thermidorian Reaction ( or ''Convention thermidorienne'', "Thermidorian Convention") is the common term for the period between the ousting of Maximilien Robespierre on 9 Thermidor II, or 27 J ...

and the establishment of the

French Directory The Directory (also called Directorate; ) was the system of government established by the Constitution of the Year III, French Constitution of 1795. It takes its name from the committee of 5 men vested with executive power. The Directory gov ...

. The encounter between him and

François-Noël Babeuf François-Noël Babeuf (; 23 November 1760 – 27 May 1797), also known as Gracchus Babeuf, was a French proto-communist, revolutionary, and journalist of the French Revolutionary period. His newspaper ''Le tribun du peuple'' (''The Tribune of ...

(''Gracchus Babeuf'') and involvement in the latter's

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...

was to find in Maréchal an early influence on

, as evidenced by the

manifesto A manifesto is a written declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party, or government. A manifesto can accept a previously published opinion or public consensus, but many prominent ...

he wrote in support of Babeuf's goals - (first issued in 1796). His later works include an 1801 ("Bill Forbidding the Teaching of Reading to Women"), which relates to the subject matter of

women's studies Women's studies is an academic field that draws on Feminism, feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining Social constructionism, social and cultural constructs of gender; ...

and

egalitarianism Egalitarianism (; also equalitarianism) is a school of thought within political philosophy that builds on the concept of social equality, prioritizing it for all people. Egalitarian doctrines are generally characterized by the idea that all hum ...

, as well as a ("Dictionary of Ancient and Modern Atheists"). He died at

Montrouge Montrouge () is a Communes of France, commune in the southern Parisian suburbs, located from the centre of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. After a long period of decline, the population has increased agai ...

in 1803.

Works

''Bibliothèque des amans. A gnide''
(1764) * (1770)
''Chansons anacréontiques''
(1770)
''Essais de poésies légères suivis d'un songe''
(1775)
''Dieu et les prêtres, Fragments d'un poème philosophique''''Le livre de tous les ages, ou, Le Pibrac moderne: quatrains moraux''
(1779)
''Fragmens d'un poème moral sur Dieu''
(1781) * (1782)
''Nouvelle méthode courte et facile pour apprendre à lire aux enfans''
(1783). Contains also: ''Le Drelincourt moderne. Quatrains moraux'' * (1784)
''Histoire de France, représentée par figures accompagnées de discours''. Tome premier

Tome secondTome troisièmeTome quatrième

Tome cinquième
(1787–1796) * (1788)
''Costumes civils actuels de tous les peuples connus, dessinés da̕près nature, gravés et coloriés, accompagnés d'une notice historique sur leurs coutumes, mœurs, religions, &c. &c.''. Tome premierTome secondTome troisieme
(1788)
''Apologues modernes, à l'usage d'un dauphin, premières leçons du fils aîné d'un roi''
(1788)
''Antiquités d'Herculanum; ou, Les plus belles peintures antiques ...''
(1789)
''Dame Nature à la barre de l'Assemblée nationale''
(1791)
''Dictionnaire des honnêtes gens''
(1791)
''Anecdotes peu connues, sur les journées des 2 et s Septembre 1792. a Paris''
(ca. 1792)
''La constitution française en chansons. A l'usage des honnêtes gens''
(1792)
''Jugement dernier des rois, prophétie et un acte, en prose''
(théâtre, 1793)
''Almanach des honnêtes gens, contenant les prophéties pour chaque mois de l'année 1793, des anecdotes peu connues sur les journées de 10 août, 2 et 3 septembre 1792; et la liste des personnes égorgées dans les différentes prisons''
(1793)
''Pensées libres sur les prêtres''
(1798)
''Le Lucrèse français, fragmens d'un poëme''
(1798)
''Culte et lois d'une société d'hommes sans Dieu''
(1798)
''Les Voyages de Pythagore en Égypte, dans la Chaldée, dans l'Inde, en Crète, a Sparte. en Sicile, a Rome, a Carthage, a Marseille et dans les Gaules ''
(1799)
''Dictionnaire des Athées anciens et modernes''
(1800)
''Histoire universelle en style lapidaire''
(1800)
''Pour et contre la Bible''
(1801)
''La femme abbé''
(1801) * (1801)
''De la vertu''
(1807)
''Projet d'une loi portant défense d'apprendre à lire aux femmes''
(1841)

Works in English translation

*''The Woman Priest: A Translation of Sylvain Marechal's Novella, "La femme abbe" '', translated by Sheila Delany, 2016, University of Alberta Press. *For and Against the Bible: A Translation of Sylvain Maréchal's Pour Et Contre la Bible (1801). by Sheila Delany, 2020, Netherlands, Brill .

References

External links

Sylvain Maréchal's essays translated in English at Marxist Internet Archive

Sylvain Maréchal
on data.bnf.fr * * * Archive o
Pierre Sylvain Maréchal Papers
at the

International Institute of Social History International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marechal, Sylvain 18th-century atheists 18th-century French male writers 18th-century French poets 18th-century French dramatists and playwrights French opera librettists 18th-century French philosophers French atheists Atheist philosophers French communists French socialists Enlightenment philosophers 18th-century French lawyers French erotica writers Newspaper editors of the French Revolution People involved in the Conspiracy of the Equals French male essayists Writers from Paris 1750 births 1803 deaths 18th-century French essayists 19th-century atheists Proto-socialists Proto-anarchists