D'Alembert’s Dream

D'Alembert’s Dream ( or The Dream of D'Alembert, French: Le Rêve de d'Alembert) is an ensemble of three philosophical dialogues authored by Denis Diderot in 1769, which first anonymously appeared in part in the Correspondance littéraire, philosophique et critique in 1782, but was not published in its own right until 1830:

• Conversation between d’Alembert and Diderot
• D’Alembert’s Dream
• Continuation of the Conversation between d’Alembert and Diderot

In this work, Diderot is at the zenith of his development of materialist theories. It is here that he introduces his theory on life and nature, indicating that matter is not fixed but that, on the contrary, subject to evolution. Each species in existence transforms itself and gives birth to a new species.

He would later create a special version for his patroness, Catherine II of Russia, replacing certain character's names.

Both Julie de Lespinasse and D’Alembert took poorly to being used as protagonists of the conversations.