The Reception of French Materialism in Enlightenment Germany, 1739-1789
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The Reception of French Materialism in Enlightenment Germany, 1739-1789 A thesis submitted to the University of Manchester for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Humanities 2013 Nick Treuherz School of Arts, Languages and Cultures Contents Abstract…………………………………………..….5 Declaration…………………………………………..6 Acknowledgments…………………………………..7 Introduction………………………………….............8 1. Bibliographical dissemination……………..….....43 2. Thinking matter………………………..………...83 3. Matter and movement……………..……………119 4. Immortality…………………………...………...144 5. Morality……………………………..………….175 Conclusion…………………………………..…….218 Appendix …………………………………………222 Bibliography………………………………….…...252 Word Count: 79,967 2 Works frequently cited: Editions and Abbreviations Unless otherwise stated, the following editions are used, abbreviated as follows: Correspondance Diderot Correspondance de Diderot, ed. by Georges Roth and Jean Varloot, 16 vols (Paris: Minuit, 1955-70). DFS Heinrich Friedrich Diez, Heinrich Friedrich Diez: Frühe Schriften (1772-1784), ed. by Manfred Voigts (Würzburg: Königshausen & Neumann, 2010). DPV Denis Diderot, Œuvres complètes de Diderot, ed. by Herbert Dieckmann, Jacques Proust, Jean Varloot and others, 33 vols (Paris: Hermann, 1975-). De l’esprit Claude Adrien Helvétius, De l’esprit (Paris: Durand, 1758). Making of the Modern World. Gale Group. Encyclopédie Encyclopédie ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers, ed. by Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d’Alembert, [28 vols] (1751-72, repr. New York: Pergamon, 1969, 5 vols). GGA Göttingische Zeitungen von gelehrten Sachen (1739-53) and the Göttingsche Anzeigen von gelehrten Sachen (1753-1801). De l’homme Helvétius, De l’homme (Londres [The Hague]: 1773). Eighteenth Century Collections Online. Gale Group. Jubiläumsausgabe Moses Mendelssohn, Gesammelte Schriften. Jubiläumsausgabe, ed. by Fritz Bamberger and others, 25 vols (Berlin: Akademie, 1929-; Stuttgart-Bad Canstatt: Frommann-Holzboog, 1971-). OCV François-Marie Arouet, Voltaire, Œuvres complètes de Voltaire (Oxford: Voltaire Foundation, 1970-). OP [Julien Offray de La Mettrie], Œuvres philosophiques, ed. by Francine Markovits, 2 vols (Paris: Fayard, 1987). SVEC Studies on Voltaire and the Eighteenth Century (Banbury, Oxford: Voltaire Foundation, 1955-). Système [Paul Henri Thiry, baron d’Holbach] Système de la nature. Ou des loix du monde physique & du monde moral. Par M. Mirabaud (Londres [Amsterdam]: 1770) Eighteenth Century Collections Online. Gale Group. 3 The works of d’Holbach all appeared anonymously or under pseudonyms in his lifetime. To avoid a surfeit of brackets, his name will appear as the author in references. It should be noted, however, that these are all posthumous attributions, unknown to contemporary readers. All internet sources were last accessed in September 2013. All primary sources are quoted as published, including any idiosyncratic spelling, grammar and syntax, particularly common in eighteenth-century German. Unless otherwise stated, italics in quotations are in the original. 4 Abstract This thesis assesses the reception in Germany of writings by four eighteenth-century French materialists: La Mettrie, Diderot, Helvétius and d’Holbach. Challenging the current orthodoxy which opposes a moderate, theologically-informed German Enlightenment to the radical, anticlerical French Enlightenment, the research presented here focuses on attempts in Germany to use the materialism of these French writers in a positive manner. Using the concept of cultural transfer, this study investigates the material circulation of their writings and how their ideas were discussed in Germany. It aims to show that there was in fact a set of German thinkers keen to circulate French ideas on materialism. The research firstly assesses the availability (both in French and in German translation) of texts by the French authors, and reactions to their often controversial writings, both in review journals and texts by well-known German philosophers. This generally reveals a negative judgment of the French texts, which are dismissed as frivolous or dangerous. A range of examples shows how the literary-philosophical establishment consistently marginalised French materialism, which was seen as potentially dangerous to morality. The German socio-political framework will be studied, in order to understand if censorship or trading conditions were a barrier or a support to the circulation of French texts. After this first chapter on diffusion and discourse analysis, there are four additional chapters investigating the German reception of particular aspects of materialist thought, which analyse both the French writings, and the German context into which they were brought. Chapter two deals with sensualism and the idea of thinking matter. Chapter three analyses the reception of materialist conceptions of active matter, where motion is posited as an essential property of matter. Chapter four examines the materialist refutation of immortality of the soul. Chapter five assesses how the French writers’ ideas on morality, informed by their materialism, were transferred to German discourse. The German proponents of French materialism are all much less well known than detractors such as Lessing, Goethe, Reimarus and Mendelssohn. They include Karl Spazier, Heinrich Friedrich Diez, Johann Heinrich Schulz, Karl von Knoblauch and Michael Hißmann, among others. Each of these writers, occupying different positions in the literary-philosophical field, interacts with French materialist texts in different ways, and works differently to introduce these ideas into their own texts, using different strategies, including quotation and translation. Some seem to quote these works without attribution; others boldly declare their French sources as authoritative figures to support their positions. This thesis, therefore, aims to prove that in spite of the social and intellectual constraints on eighteenth-century German publishing, there were a number of German writers who, using a range of strategies, managed to circumvent these constraints and introduce these French ideas, either by appropriation, or by direct quotation, thus introducing the ideas of these previously condemned French philosophes into German discourse. 5 Declaration I hereby declare that no portion of the work referred to in this thesis has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification of this or any other university or other institute of learning. Copyright statement i. The author of this thesis (including any appendices and/or schedules to this thesis) owns certain copyright or related rights in it (the “Copyright”) and he has given The University of Manchester certain rights to use such Copyright, including for administrative purposes. ii. Copies of this thesis, either in full or in extracts and whether in hard or electronic copy, may be made only in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended) and regulations issued under it or, where appropriate, in accordance with licensing agreements which the University has from time to time. This page must form part of any such copies made. iii. The ownership of certain Copyright, patents, designs, trademarks and other intellectual property (the “Intellectual Property”) and any reproductions of copyright works in the thesis, for example graphs and tables (“Reproductions”), which may be described in this thesis, may not be owned by the author and may be owned by third parties. Such Intellectual Property and Reproductions cannot and must not be made available for use without the prior written permission of the owner(s) of the relevant Intellectual Property and/or Reproductions. iv. Further information on the conditions under which disclosure, publication and commercialisation of this thesis, the Copyright and any Intellectual Property and/or Reproductions described in it may take place is available in the University IP Policy (see http://documents.manchester.ac.uk/DocuInfo.aspx?DocID=487), in any relevant Thesis restriction declarations deposited in the University Library, The University Library’s regulations (see http://www.manchester.ac.uk/library/aboutus/regulations) and in The University’s policy on Presentation of Theses 6 Acknowledgments I wish to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to my two supervisors, Professor David Adams and Dr. Judith Purver. They have always known when to give me freedom to work things out for myself and when to offer guidance. Their joint support and assistance in preparing this thesis has been invaluable at every stage. I also extend my gratitude to Professor Stuart Jones and Professor Jim Bergin, who have both acted as advisors to the project with enthusiasm and insight. I wish to thank the AHRC for supporting this thesis in the form of a doctoral scholarship. I also wish to thank the trustees of the William Robson-Scott Travelling Scholarship for their award, which enabled me to undertake research in Berlin in August 2012. In addition, I thank the organisers of the Graduate School which took place at the Deutsches Literaturarchiv in Marbach in April 2012, where I was able to carry out further research. I would like to thank my parents for their support. Finally, I wish to thank Mathilde, to whom this work is dedicated. 7 Introduction French radicalism and German conservatism? Julien Offray de La Mettrie, a French doctor and philosopher born in Saint Malo in 1709, lived a short yet eventful life. Aged thirty-five, he published a treatise,