伏尔泰理性主义史学

18世纪法国启蒙运动的伟大先驱伏尔泰开创了理性主义史学 ,提出了理性主义进步史观 ;他把目光从传统的政治军事史转向文化史 ,开文化史之先河 ;他批判了传统的西欧中心论 ,提出整体史的研究方法 ;他还首次提出“历史哲学”这一概念。所有这些思想精华和将其理论付诸实践的两部史著《路易十四时代》和《风俗论》使之享有西方“近代历史学的先驱”这一不朽称号。但是 ,伏尔泰对人的理性过分夸大和对中世纪的论战性的否定 ,成为19世纪浪漫主义史家反击的焦点

Voltaire's Historical Science of Rationalism

Voltaire, the great pioneer of the Enlightenment of France in the eighteenth century. Votaire initiated the historical science of rationalism and put forward the progressive concept of the rationalism; He transfered his historical visual angle from traditional political and military affairs to culture so as to become the forerunner of the cultural history; He criticized the traditional opinion that it was western Europe that was the centre of the earth, raised the new method of studying that regarded the human's history as a whole; Moreover, He firstly advanced the concept "philosophy on historical science". Because of all these thoughts and his two famous historical writings, Age of louis XTV and An Essay on the Manners and Spirit of Nations which reflected his historical theory,Votaire was worthy of the immortal title of "the western pioneer of morden historical science". However, He extremely exaggerated human's ration and simply negated Middle Age,which became the focus of counterattract by the historical science of romanticism .