Second of 3 editions of a controversial work first published the same year. "Helvétius's synthesis of sensationalist and materialist philosophy in De l'Esprit . . . revealed the socially radical and antireligious implications of these schools of thought" (DLB), leading both civil and religious authorities to condemn the book. Rieber & Gach 200; Smith, "The Publication of Helvétius's De l'Esprit (1758-9)," French Studies XVIII (1964), pages 332-44; Tchemerzine (1977) III, 672.
