Science for a Polite Society - Gender, Culture and the Demonstration of Enlightenment

This book is an intriguing re-examination of the social, cultural, and intellectual context of the origins of modern science. It shows that the French adopted science as basis for their enlightenment because of their personal fascination with philosophy of nature and the history of its creatures.

List of contents

Preface -- The Introduction, in which the Author offers two tales of the Scientific Revolution -- Science in the Reign of Louis XIII -- Pawning off the New Science: Theophraste Renaudot and the Conferences of the Bureau d’adresse -- Of Black Sheep, False Suns, and Systematic Thought: René Descartes and His World -- Science in the Reign of Louis XIV -- A Science for a Polite Society: the Crown as the second most Philosophical Hat in Paris -- A Pretty Novel of Physics, in which Cogito, ergo sum meets l’État, c’est moi -- Science in the Reign of Louis XV -- The Demonstration of Enlightenment -- The Discovery of the Newtonian World; or, Flattening the Poles if not the Cartesians -- Electricity in the Eighteenth Century; or, The Philosophy of Shocks and Sparks -- The Conclusion, in which the Author Draws a Moral

About the author

Geoffrey V. Sutton

Summary

This book is an intriguing re-examination of the social, cultural, and intellectual context of the origins of modern science. It shows that the French adopted science as basis for their enlightenment because of their personal fascination with philosophy of nature and the history of its creatures.

Product details

• Authors: Geoffrey Sutton, Geoffrey V Sutton, Geoffrey V. Sutton
• Publisher: Perseus Books Uk
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 30.11.1995
• EAN: 9780813315768
• ISBN: 978-0-8133-1576-8
• No. of pages: 416
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Natural sciences (general); Non-fiction book > Dictionaries, reference works > Dictionaries, encyclopaedias; Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Sociological theories; 17. Jahrhundert (1600 bis 1699 n. Chr.), Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften, Wissenschaftsphilosophie und -theorie, 18. Jahrhundert (1700 bis 1799 n. Chr.)