Philosophy and Art During the French Revolution 

Worksheet

Isaiah Berlin (1909–1997), British essayist and philosopher, wrote that the French Revolution was dedicated to:

“the creation or restoration of a static and harmonious society, founded on unfaltering principles, a dream of classic perfection, or at least the closest [thing] to it feasible on earth. It preached a peaceful universalism and a rational humanitarianism.” 

1. Define the following terms, using a dictionary:

restoration

static

harmonious

unfaltering

principle

feasible

universalism

rational

humanitarianism

2.  Paraphrase Berlin’s quote below:

3.  Art historian Hugh Honour (b. 1927) wrote that if you substitute the word “art” for “society” in the quotation above, you have a definition of the essence of the Neoclassical revolution in art. Replace the word “society” with the word “art” in the quotation above and, using specific examples from the image assigned to your group, state whether or not you agree with Hugh Honour, and why.