La Société de la raison éclairée

La Société de la raison éclairée is a small but growing group of educated yet delusional Dementlieuse whose faith in modern science is akin to that of religious zealots. Prominent among its members are biologists, chemists, and engineers.

By modern science the society understands material science: the science of things and of the mechanical, mathematically bound universe in which they are purported to exist. Science is the study of the great machine of existence. Existence consists of matter in motion. Being that is not matter in motion is being that should not exist, indeed is being that does not exist. Men are biological machines. Thought is electrical impulses. Philosophy is, at best, groundless speculation and, at worst, obscurantist superstition. Magic is either smoke and mirrors or as-yet-unexplained instances of matter in motion. Religion and the gods are but obscurantist superstition.

La Société de la raison éclairée owes its ideology to science as it is practiced in Lamordia. The group's existence does not stretch back into the false history of Dementlieu. Instead the society came to be three years after Lamordia appeared on Dementlieu's northern frontier.

It is at least conceivable that the seed from which La Société de la raison éclairée sprung was planted by Lamordia's Syndicate of Enlightened Citizens. Yet the methods of the two groups are very different. Whereas the Syndicate of Enlightened Citizens secretly promotes violence against being that should not be that it might in fact no longer be, La Société de la raison éclairée believes in the power of a quiet discussion and of clear thinking to rid the world of enigmas and mysteries. The Lamordian group would happily orchestrate the death of a wizard. The Dementlieuse group would happily invite the wizard to lunch and, after persuading itself that he is not a simple charlatan, offer him instruction in the methods of science so that all may arrive at the truth of what he is really doing when he thinks that he is casting spells.

The emminent reasonableness of the society is, of course, an illusion. A wizard who sits down with the society is permitted to arrive at the truth of his magic only in terms of matter in motion. The prejudices of the society are a vitriol that reduces every alien term to those of material science. This quickly exhausts the goodwill of even the most patient of wizards so nothing productive is forthcoming from the discussion.

The matter is far worse with priests. Wheras wizards are seen as tinkerers in need of the genuine understanding afforded by the principles of material science, priests are held to be stiffling the search for truth with the cold comfort of outright lies to which they in their weakness succumb. And the explosive situation is not defused in the least by the fact that priests hold much the same opinion of the members of the society. Indeed, it is the informal policy of the society to not even bother treating with priests and religious zealots generally.

La Société de la raison éclairée has scant influence in Dementlieu and virtually none beyond its borders. No one views the society as a threat, although many deem it a nuisance. The Syndicate of Enlightened Citizens has, however, infiltrated the group, principally to gain access to the wealth of information in its records, but also in the hope of bending the will of the group towards violence.

The perchance of La Société de la raison éclairée for bothering wizards who it would be wiser to leave alone earned it a place in Lord of Necropolis, a forged and calumnious autobiographical parody of the life of Azalin Rex. In the work Azalin describes his elaborate preparations for a discussion with the society over dinner at Castle Avernus:

"Fearweed", Runco vereor, is something of a misnomer. Unfortunately, madness weed, Runco rabies, is little better. In any case, the candles were the success that I had expected. For obvious reasons living bees would not readily do the work thus a hive was slain and infused with my potency. Its members gathered the pollen, embedding it in their wax. The wax was cast into shape, the steak knives were honed to a razor’s edge, and thus I was well armed to meet over dinner the arguments of La Société de la raison éclairée.”

Authorship

La Société de la raison éclairée was created by cure as part of a contribution to John W. Mangrum's Teeny Tiny Tales of Terror project (posted on the Fraternity of Shadows message board).