Literature in Dialogue with the Natural Sciences Competing Claims from the Early Modern Period to the 20th Century

The thesis of the book is that in the early modern period, literature claimed precedence over the observation of nature. There were shifts through phases of temporary parity, the priority of natural sciences in the 19th century, and their critique by literature in the 20th century. These developments are presented in France and the Spanish-speaking world, while also considering Germany and England: While Montaigne, Pedro Mexía, Pérez de Oliva, Vives, and Gracián prioritize literature, Pascal contrasts the "esprit de finesse" with the "esprit de géométrie," opening a controversy that Linnaeus and Buffon continue. Enlightenment thinkers like Voltaire orient themselves toward the English model, where Locke and Hume introduce empirical sciences whose advances Rousseau critiques. In the 19th century, Balzac and Pérez Galdós engage with the natural sciences, with Zola later looking to Darwin and Comte as role models. Finally, the aporias of scientific thinking are highlighted by Ortega y Gasset, Borges, and Sábato.

About the author

Christoph Strosetzki is a professor of Romance Studies at the University of Münster.

Product details

• Authors: Christoph Strosetzki
• Publisher: Springer, Berlin
• Content: Book
• Product form: Paperback / Softback
• Publication date: 20.06.2025
• Subject: Humanities, art, music > Linguistics and literary studies > General and comparative literary studies
• EAN: 9783662713181
• ISBN: 978-3-662-71318-1
• Pages: 241
• Illustrations: X, 241 p. 1 illus.
• Dimensions (packing): 15.5 x 1.4 x 23.5 cm
• Weight (packing): 388 g
• Subjects: Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften, Literaturwissenschaft: 1900 bis 2000, Literaturwissenschaft: 1800 bis 1900, Vergleichende Literaturwissenschaft, Comparative Literature, Positivism, Blaise Pascal, History of Science, Miguel de Unamuno, French Literature, Spanish Literature, Nineteenth-Century Literature, Twentieth-Century Literature, Ortega y Gasset, novela metafísica, Seventeenth-Century Literature, Humanities vs. Natural Sciences