The Age of Curiosity: The Neural Network of an Idea in Eighteenth-Century English Literature

Simone Broders

Published by De Gruyter 2021

The Age of Curiosity

The Neural Network of an Idea in Eighteenth-Century English Literature

Simone Broders

Volume 72 in the series Buchreihe der Anglia / Anglia Book Series

https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110722048

Overview
Contents

About this book

Challenging the ‘success story’ of curiosity from original sin to intellectual virtue, this study uses an innovative methodological approach to the history of ideas as a non-teleological neural network based on current research in information technology and neurophysiology. The network offers a dynamic alternative to the ‘development’ of curiosity within the progress-oriented mythology of the Enlightenment, emphasizing the oscillation and interaction of ideas within the processes of their construction, as well as exposing the power relations behind them.

The text corpus focuses on enactments of curiosity in English literature of the 'Long' Eighteenth Century (c. 1680-1818), such as transgression of boundaries, breach of taboo, gendered curiosity, sensationalism, or academic endeavour, bringing together a variety of examples from all major genres.

The Age of Curiosity contributes to current debates on a post-Foucauldian renewal of Lovejoy’s history of ideas in Enlightenment studies, exploring both curiosity as an indispensable trait for the search of answers to the fundamental yet unresolved questions of ‘identity’ or ‘truth’, and its potential as cura, the care for others and the world.

‘neo-history of ideas’ as a present-day alternative to Lovejoy

in-depth analysis of eighteenth-century texts from all major genres

successful application of metaphors from information science to illustrate cultural concepts

Author / Editor information

Simone Broders, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	I
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	V
Scribal Abbreviations Publicly Available Download PDF	VII
Tables and Illustrations Publicly Available Download PDF	IX
Acknowledgements Publicly Available Download PDF	XI
Preface: Networking the Age of Curiosity: Unmasking the Myth Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1 Original Sin or Secret of Happiness? An Introduction to Curiosity Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	6
2 “The Thinking Animal”: Lovejoy’s History of Ideas Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	27
3 Methodology of the Study Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	46
4 Curiosity: Origins of the Debate Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	66
5 Curiosity Across Different Media Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	92
6 Agents of Curiosity and the ‘New Science’ Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	162
7 Secret Chambers, Hidden Chests, and the Mysterious Self: Objects of Curiosity in Romanticism Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	222
8 Conclusion: Legitimacy of Curiosity in the Eighteenth Century and Beyond Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	278
Works Cited Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	289
Dictionaries, Thesauri Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	312
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	313

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: De Gruyter
Audience: Scholars of Enlightenment Studies, Romanticism, English Studies, Literary and Cultural Studies, Digital Humanities, Libraries
Pages
- Front matter: 10
- Main content: 316
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 24
- Tables: 3
Keywords: curiosity; Enlightenment; Long Eighteenth Century; network theory

eBook

Published: May 10, 2021
ISBN: 9783110722048

Hardcover

Published: May 10, 2021
ISBN: 9783110721911