The ironical scourge of modern times. About Montesquieu, "Lettere persiane", edited by Domenico Felice, Milano, Feltrinelli, 2020, 442 pp.

Abstract

Considered by most of the critics as a mere work preparatory to Esprit des lois, in extreme cases also as a divertissement, the book Lettere persiane by Montesquieu, edited by Domenico Felice, is seen in a new light. This work should be taken into consideration not only as anticipating Montesquieu’s masterpiece, but also as a political and philosophical treatise and, in addition to this, a writing with its own precise specificity and autonomy. Besides, Lettere persiane, points out the author’s opposition to the despotism and the oppression of man in all its forms; by the use of irony, the French philosopher expresses a deep feeling of seriousness and a certain pessimism which deny the prejudice according to which this work of Montesquieu’s is the result of the author’s enjoyment.