Philosophical Societies in the Scottish Enlightenment
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/RF.2018.030Keywords
Scottish Enlightenment, philosophical societies, the Aberdeen Philosophical Society, the Wise Club, the Philosophical Society of EdinburgAbstract
As one of the outstanding researchers of that time, Roger L. Emerson, claims, the phenomenon of the Scottish Enlightenment, called the ‘Age of Improvement’, is based on ‘cosmopolitan learned society’. The Parliamentary Union of 1707 created a unique situation resulting in a significant development and improvement of both the economic and cultural conditions. The ‘Age of Improvement’ had a few key characteristics. One of them was the development of the science of human nature and natural philosophy. The other one was connected with promoting and spreading that knowledge throughout the Scottish society. The crucial role in cultivating natural sciences was played by universities and numerous specialized societies. What is analysed in this study is the role of philosophical societies in 18th century Scotland. The activities of the Aberdeen Philosophical Society, the Wise Club, and the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh presented in this study shows the important role they played in shaping the new ‘enlightened’ world.
References
Allan, David. Making British Culture: English Readers and the Scottish Enlightenment, 1740–1830. Routledge Studies in Cultural History, 8. London: Routledge, 2008.
De Ridder-Symoens, Hilde. A History of University in Europe: vol. II Universities in Early Modern Europe (1500–1800). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
Emerson, Roger L. Essays on David Hume, Medical Men and Scottish Enlightenment: Industry, knowledge and Humanity. London: Routledge, 2016.
Emerson, Roger L. “Science and the Origins and Concerns of the Scottish Enlightenment.” History of Science 26, (1988): 333–366.
Emerson, Roger L. “The Philosophical Society of Edinburgh 1737–1747.” The British Journal of History of Science 12, no. 2 (July 1979): 155–191.
Emerson, Roger L. “The Philosophical Society of Edinburgh 1748–1768.” The British Journal of History of Science 14, no. 2 (July 1981): 133–176.
Emerson, Roger L. “The Philosophical Society of Edinburgh 1768–1783.” The British Journal of History of Science 18, no. 3 (Nov. 1985): 255–303.
Emerson, Roger L. “The Scottish Enlightenment and the End of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh.” The British Journal of History of Science 21 no. 1 (March 1988): 33–66.
Holcomb, Kathleen. “Reid in the Philosophical Society.” In The Philosophy of Thomas Reid, edited by Melvin Dalgarno and Eric Matthews, 413–20. Kulwer Academic Publisher, 1989.
Lee Wiley, Margaret. “Gerard and the Scots Societies.” Studies in English, no 20 (1940):132–136.
Minutes of the Aberdeen Philosophical Society, 1758–1773, edited by Lewis H. Ulman, Aberdeen University Studies, 158. Aberdeen: Aberdeen University Press, 1990.
Rudy, Willis. The Universities of Europe, 1100–1914: A history, 1920. Associated University Press, 1984.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 1005
Number of citations: 0
