Simon Foucher

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Simon Foucher (1 March 1644 - 27 April 1696) was a French philosopher born in Dijon. He was the son of a merchant, and appears to have taken orders at a very early age. For some years he held the position of honorary canon at Dijon, but this he resigned in order to take up his residence in Paris. He graduated at the Sorbonne, and spent the remainder of his life in literary work in Paris, where he died. In his day Foucher enjoyed considerable reputation as a keen opponent of Malebranche. His philosophical standpoint was one of scepticism in regard to external perception. He revived the old arguments of the Academy, and advanced them with much ingenuity against Malebranches doctrine, Otherwise his scepticism is subordinate to orthodox belief, the fundamental dogmas of the church seeming to him intuitively evident. His object was to reconcile his religious with his philosophical creed, and to remain a Christian without ceasing to be an academician. His writings against Malebranche were collected under the title Dissertations sur la rechercize de la vdrit, 1693.

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This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.