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This dissertation offers a re-evaluation of the role of the imagination in Jean- Jacques Rousseau’s 'Emile: or On Education' (1762) and Christoph Martin Wieland’s 'Geschichte des Agathon' (1794). My central claim is that both novels develop a pedagogy of the imagination in order to overcome the dilemmas of Cartesian dualism, that is, to form a beautiful soul in whom sensuality and reason, the body and the spirit, coexist in harmony. I demonstrate that both texts highlight the important but potentially damaging role played by the imagination in the development of religious thought, moral sentiments, and sexuality. The texts suggest that while a malformed imagination results in materialism, egotism, libertinism, and despotism, a well-formed imagination provides the foundation for natural religion, cosmopolitan enthusiasm, sentimental love, and a just political constitution. Consequently, I argue that for Rousseau and Wieland, harnessing the power of the imagination becomes the key to reconciling human nature and civil society. In addition to elucidating the role of the imagination in 'Emile' and 'Agathon', this dissertation also contributes to an understanding of the intellectual affinities between Rousseau and Wieland more generally. In preparation for the comparative reading of 'Emile' and 'Agathon', I survey Wieland’s private and public responses to Rousseau and contend that although the two authors differ significantly in their narrative and philosophical approach, they nevertheless share similar moral and political ideals. Both authors acknowledge the ability of the imagination to drive a wedge between the individual’s natural inclinations and moral duties, causing fragmentation of the self and society in turn. Yet the imagination, the motor of cultural progress, is not only the source of man’s alienation, it is also the remedy for his dividedness. If properly harnessed, the imagination can cease to be the cause of human depravity and become the basis of peaceful human relations, both at the level of the individual and that of society as a whole. In conclusion, I propose that the role of the imagination in forming the beautiful soul has consequences for the collective, and that we can read the moral constitutions of Emile and Agathon as negotiating the possibilities of various political constitutions, including that of a democratic state. / Thesis (Ph.D, German) -- Queen's University, 2012-10-15 17:47:42.944

The central figure in this thesis is Robert Jameson (1774-1854), geologist, mineralogist and Professor of Natural History at the University of Edinburgh. Jameson's geological work is examined in relation to the social and intellectual interests of contemporary civil society, and in particular, in terms of the debates in Edinburgh between Huttonians and Wernerians (of which group Jameson was one) concerning the nature of geological evidence and of theory in geological explanation. This thesis is also concerned to bring into sharper focus the state of, and public interest in, the earth sciences in Scotland in the first two decades of the nineteenth century. In this regard, analysis centres upon the conceptual basis and scientific methods behind Jameson's work and upon the making of natural knowledge as a situated intellectual and social concern. The thesis has eight chapters. Following an introduction and literature review they are, respectively, concerned with showing that in societies, teaching, museology, fieldwork, laboratories and through publications, Jameson's scientific 'methodology' conformed in large part to the Baconian taxonomic and descriptive elements of Wernerianism. This thesis also suggests that scholars have hitherto misrepresented and overplayed the 'theoretical' nature of Jameson's work, and in so doing, have only characterised the debate between Huttonians and Wemerians as a conflict between rival theories. In re-examining the several activities and the conduct of Huttonians and Wernerians (in this case Jameson) in a variety of settings, a rather different understanding of the nature of debate is here advanced. Specifically, it is shown that rivalry between Huttonians and Wernerians in the sites stated above might be better understood not in terms of two opposing theories, but, rather, as a rivalry between a vigorously held theory on the one hand (proponents of Huttonianism) and, on the other, a conviction about the prematurity of theory and importance of a Baconian empirical approach. The thesis also suggests that understanding the intellectual contexts to such geological enquiry depends importantly upon knowing something of the social and civic nature of scientific 'ownership', institutional authority, personal reputation and the proprietorial control of local scientific knowledge.

This dissertation highlights the influence of the extension of Empire in India on Enlightenment in Scotland. It argues, consistently, that an ever increasing contact with the Eastern parts of Empire over the eighteenth century created productive tensions between the personal, material and intellectual worlds of the Edinburgh literati. Scottish thinkers stood in close contact to one another and congregated in the Select Society and the Poker Club. Beyond the domestic boundaries, they had practical and personal interests in contemporary events in the East Indies. All had relatives or acquaintances in India and were all correspondents of Sir John Macpherson, Governor-General of India (1785-6). The dissertation shows that a revision of civic humanism on the one hand and scientific Whiggism on the other, found their main dilemma in “luxury” and “despotism” respectively. Both of these concepts were intrinsically connected with the perception of India at the beginning of the eighteenth century. One of the outcomes of the literati’s personal and intellectual engagement with India was the different solutions for the regulation of Empire. Ferguson, following the tradition of civic humanism, argued for the importance of civic virtue in order to maintain Empire. His thoughts stood in stark contrast to Smith, Hume and particularly Robertson. Vigour, instead of civic virtue, needed to be developed and strengthened. No monolithic canon of how Empire could be sustained was developed by these men, but all were involved in squaring the circle of improvement through Empire. The constant interplay between domestic, cosmopolitan and imperial spheres suggests that Enlightenment had an imperial nature, which is highlighted in relation to the literati’s particular investigation of “luxury” and “despotism” and their positive perception of Nabobs. Moreover, the dissertation emphasises that Edinburgh associations can not only be viewed as pillars of Enlightenment in Scotland, but also as networks and the gateways to Empire from at least the 1760s. The evidence assembled suggests that men like Ferguson and Robertson were active players in a world which was intellectually and practically shaped by Empire.

L’ironie dialogique, favorisée par plusieurs genres littéraires à l’époque des Lumières, est-elle un simple produit de l’esprit du temps ou l’adjuvant tactique nécessaire au progrès des idées ? Sous l’enjouement et le bel-esprit conversationnel des ironistes, comment ne pas discerner le masque rhétorique et ludique d’un examen critique qui, de l’esthétique à la morale et aux mœurs, n’épargne aucun domaine de l’autoréflexivité ? La thèse se place dans cette perspective en observant qu’au-delà de la topique narrative et fictionnelle, au-delà de la satire sociale et psychologique, les cibles cachées des ironistes sont souvent des paravents intellectuels forgés au siècle précédent : la défense raffinée du statu quo par la morale de l’honnêteté et la civilité de la politesse ; l’abstraction du commerce des sexes au moyen du langage de l’amour galant et des bienséances internes et externes; la quête du sublime tragique censé gratifier le sacrifice héroïque du bonheur au devoir d’état ; la comédie comique des vices individuels occultant le débat sur les vices institutionnels, etc. / The rhetorics of Irony in Enlightenment’s written dialogues are no mere by-products of the then prevalent social mode of conversational interplay. Their careful perusal indicates that Irony and Humour were instrumental in the vast reshuffling of moral values, religious and political obedience, aesthetic codes, social behaviours that are a legacy of the period. This dissertation focuses on the four main literary areas where dialogical Irony plays an active role in textual topics: parody, comedy, philosophical dialogue and libertine novels. The hypothesis here offered is that ironic subversion is mostly aimed at mental and behavioural compliances made consensual during the Classical period, i.e.: politeness and “honesty” as paramount signs of social fitness; exaltation of the dramatic sublime as benchmark for excellence in Tragedy; allegory and propriety in the written rendition of love-making; linkage of social hardships to individual violation of Christian rules and not to collective/institutional failures; etc.

I examine the current state of democracy in the United States and how it has evolved from its original, direct form. Present-day problems with democracy emerge in part because of a failure to exercise our autonomy, which is the very basis of our self-governance. To consistently improve the ways in which we organize ourselves in society, I suggest a civil duty to become informed about political issues and engage with others from different backgrounds. Because we exercise reason in order to determine governance, thoughtful deliberation provides opportunities to include more diverse opinions and ideas in political decision-making. I outline an ideal deliberative democracy that would better serve the interests of the constituents given the uniqueness of today’s challenges. To explore the value of deliberation, I examine Immanuel Kant’s text “What is Enlightenment?” and Michel Foucault’s text in response to Kant. I argue that if deliberation is carried out with intention, citizens in a democracy can help strengthen the system by fulfilling duties of civility. Foucault’s historicocritical examination of ourselves reinstates our autonomy and allows an emergence from a state of immaturity. Recognition of our condition in the present day is, I will argue, an achievement of progress towards a dynamic conception of personal and collective enlightenment.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Scotland in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries produced some of the most renowned thinkers and scholars whose works are still widely read and admired. This cadre of enlightened philosophers established a framework for critical thinking and reasoning, as well as a foundation for composition studies. One of the literary geniuses whose work drew on this expertise was Arthur Conan Doyle, best known for giving the world Sherlock Holmes in the late 1880s. But Doyle’s contributions are more than mere stories; the Edinburgh native endowed his character with the philosophy he himself gleaned growing up in a culture that prized reasoning, critical thinking, elocution, and elegant composition. This dissertation explores the influences Doyle drew from the great minds of the Scottish Enlightenment and connects them to the character of Sherlock Holmes. In addition, it proposes that Holmes’s philosophy establishes a basis for composition classes, where students are introduced to the concepts of critical thinking, reasoning, and logic, and the key role these concepts play in argumentative writing.

Die Dissertation leistet einen Beitrag zur Leipziger Universitätsgeschichte des 18. Jahrhunderts. Die Arbeit befasst sich am Beispiel Leipzigs mit den lebensweltlichen Veränderungen des studentischen Habitus im urbanen Raum in einer Phase gesellschaftlicher Transformations- und Modernisierungsprozesse vor und nach 1800.

[pt] O presente trabalho analisa a construção do conceito historicismo na Alemanha - no limiar do século XVIII - a partir de sua relação com o Iluminismo e a sua constituição como uma nova weltanschauung e uma nova prática historiográfica, sobretudo nos trabalhos de Herder, Humboldt e Ranke. O estudo abarcou três características centrais do historicismo: primeiramente, a tensão entre o universal e o singular; em segundo lugar, o conflito entre a idéia de progresso e a concepção da história como um processo de amadurecimento; e, finalmente, sua relação muito próxima com o luteranismo e, em especial, com a religiosidade pietista. / [en] The standing work analyzes the building of the concept historicism in the Germany - in the border of the XVIIIth century - from its relation with the Enligthenment and its constitution as a new Weltanschauung and a new historiographical practice, above all at the works of Herder, Humboldt and Ranke. This study has comprised three central characteristics of historicism: firstly, the tension between the universal and the singular; secondly, the conflict between the idea of progress and the conception of history as a process of maturity; and, finally , its close relation with the lutheranism and, specially, with the pietist religiousity