Rescuing Renouvier

Abstract

Charles Renouvier (1815–1903) was a French philosopher active throughout much of the nineteenth century. Not formally trained as a philosopher, he was largely selftaught in philosophy. He was a student of Auguste Comte’s at the Ecole Polytechnique, with whom he studied mathematics. Renouvier did not hold an academic position. He was an author of numerous articles and books. In 1872, together with François Pillon, he founded La Critique philosophique, politique, scientifique, littéraire, which was for a time one of the few philosophical journals in France. Though almost completely unknown today, Renouvier was an influential figure in nineteenth-century French philosophy. He was an important i..