Abstract
Discussion of the fate of the Enlightenment from the moment it is thought of as a movement, and from the moment it is perceived as a threat to the authority structures of the time. I suggest that, at this juncture, several of the great Enlightenment authors begin to see the elements of the enlightened "self" as something to be shaped and imposed from above, according to a preconceived model. The same idea is apparent in several so-called "enlightened" eighteenth-century rulers, such as Frederick II, Catherine II and Joseph II, who wanted to transform the Enlightenment into an instrument of authority. I conclude by discussing the relationship between these uses and abuses of the Enlightenment, and the criticisms of the Enlightenment expressed from the eighteenth century to the present day, from both the right and the left.
