Théodore Simon Jouffroy, 1796 - 1842

Théodore Simon Jouffroy was a French Common Sense philosopher who was inspired by Victor Cousin and Charles Fourier.  His emphasis on cooperation and harmony between individuals influenced the New England Transcendentalists, especially George Ripley, in the development of Brook Farm.  Jouffroy believed that the essential basis of truth can be obtained through common sense.  He held that people can overcome their differences and stop fighting each other by acknowledging and understanding their dependence on individuality.  Ripley translated two of Jouffroy's treatises for his Specimens of Foreign Standard Literature.