Entre a Monarquia, o Catolicismo e a Razão: contribuições de Antônio Pereira De Figueiredo para o Reformismo Ilustrado

Abstract

The present work is centered on the political and literary action of Antônio Pereira de Figueiredo and his relationship with the Enlightened reformism of Marquis of Pombal. In the course of this work we will first discuss the set of ideas which characterized the Century of Lights and the peculiarities of the Portuguese Enlightenment, from the perspective of enlightened despotism. We will then review some of the key books written by Antônio Pereira as well as the documents produced by him for the Royal Censorial Court, in order to unravel the possible points of contact between the thinking of this political reformer and scholar, and the general reformist context. The current hypothesis is that as a representative of Enlightened reformism, this scholar sought to promote the ideals that seemed more suited to the needs of the State, having the regal power as his center, Catholicism as his basis and reason as his guide. So we attempt to show that his work aligns entirely with the political ideology that guided Marquis of Pombals reformism, in addition to collaborating decisively to the diffusion of such ideas among his readers.