Des landes

(André François Boureau ), b. Pondichery, 1690. Became member of the Berlin Academy and wrote numerous works, mostly under the veil of anonymity, the principal being A Critical History of Philosophy , 3 vols(1737). His Pygmalion , a philosophical romance, was condemned by the parliament of Dijon, 1742. His Reflexions sur les grands hommes qui sont mort en Plaisantant (Amsterdam, 1732) was translated into English and published in 1745 under the title, Dying Merrily . Another work directed against religion was On the certainty of Human Knowledge , a philosophical examination of the different prerogatives of reason and faith (London, 1741). Died Paris, 11 April, 1757.