This work investigates the emergence and development of secular belief systems in nineteenth-century France as functional replacements for traditional religious faith. D.G. Charlton, a scholar of French intellectual history, examines how thinkers during the period of 1815 to 1870 sought to provide moral and social cohesion through non-theological frameworks. By analyzing the writings of prominent intellectuals, the author argues that these secular ideologies functioned with the same fervor and structural intent as the religions they aimed to supersede.

Scholars frequently cite this text as a foundational study for understanding the intellectual climate of nineteenth-century France. Readers often note the academic density of the prose, which assumes a high level of familiarity with French philosophical history.