idéaliste

Forms

idéaliste (plural idéalistes)^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from French idéal + -iste.^[2][3][1] The TLFi compares the English word idealist, recorded from 1701 in the philosophical sense.^[2] Littré derived it from idéaliser instead.^[4] idéal is from Late Latin ideālis, taken as an adjective for certain senses of idée.^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found as a noun in Leibniz (before 1716), in his reply to Bayle, for a philosopher who, like Plato or Aristotle, sees the essence of things in their form.^[2][6]

Semantic evolution

As a term of philosophy it came to mean a follower of idealism, and the adjective appears in philosophie idéaliste in Mme de Staël's De l'Allemagne (1810).^[2][6] George Sand used it in 1839 for a person who has an ideal, the sense that is now usual.^[6][2] From the late 19th century such a person was often seen pejoratively as one who lives on dreams and illusions.^[6][2][7] In the arts Baudelaire called Rembrandt an idealist in 1846.^[2][6]

Bloch and Wartburg date the word to 1729.^[5]

Timeline

• before 1716 – Leibniz uses idéaliste for a philosopher who sees the essence of things in their form.^[2][3]
• 1810 – Mme de Staël writes philosophie idéaliste.^[2][6]
• 1839 – George Sand uses it for a person who has an ideal.^[2][6]
• 1846 – Baudelaire applies it to a painter.^[2][6]

Meanings

Adjective

1. (philosophy) Relating to or holding idealism.^[8][2]
2. Having an ideal and trying to live by it, often to the point of ignoring reality: Elle a une vision trop idéaliste de la politique.^[8][7]

Noun

1. (philosophy) A follower of idealism.^[8][4]
2. (often pejorative) An idealist, a dreamer.^[8][1]

Related words

• idéal
• idéalisme
• idéaliser
• idée
• réaliste

References

1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
3. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
4. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
5. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
7. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
8. ^ a b c d Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert