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Henry Oldenburg (and the Philosophical Transactions) [ Science ]

… Abstract Henry Oldenburg was at the centre of the two local social groups formed by the Royal Society, of which he was one of the secretaries, and the international social grouping created by his network of … community during this period. People > Science Keywords Correspondence Oldenburg Philosophical Transactions Royal Society Scientific community In the late seventeenth century, scientists, or ‘ natural philosophers ‘  as they were then … but closely involved in scientific matters, falls into this pattern. He was one of the first secretaries of the Royal Society of London, and he was the centre of a network of scientific correspondence, which was to form the basis of the …

Erasmus Darwin [ Science / Art and Literature / Philosophy ]

… caused by transformism. To some extent, Darwin’s theory reflected his own social practices: he wanted to lead British society toward a golden age through his network of radical thinkers, including the members of the Lunar Society but also the circle of Joseph Johnson in London, struggling for abolitionism and social reforms. People > Science People > Art and Literature People > Philosophy Keywords Darwin Lunar society Correspondence Scientific community Half a century before Charles Darwin published his essay On the Origin of …

Scottish clans [ Social interaction / Association ]

… Jacobite rebellion. Concepts > Social interaction People > Association Keywords Clans Highlands Union Tartan Scottish society Identity Scottish Enlightenment Clubs and Societies Scotland Tradition In the eighteenth century, Scottish society was still mainly structured into clans, or extended families, subdivided into multiple branches. These were led … the gap. Scottish Gaelic was associated to Irish to emphasise both its oddity and the idea that it was not British. The Society for the Propagating of Christian Knowledge tried to limit its use in the Highlands by introducing a Bible in …

James, Duke of York and Albany (and court culture in Edinburgh) [ Aristocracy / Cities ]

… elite. People > Aristocracy Places > Cities Keywords Court Edinburgh Scotland New elite Duke of York and Albany Reformed society Patronage James of York and Albany came with his family and court to Edinburgh for two stays between 1679 and 1682, which radically changed the structure and the manners of society there. The Scottish capital had not hosted any royal court since the visit of Charles I in 1633 for his … aristocracy remained at bay, reluctant to live in the city or too attached to their land. Thus, progressively, Edinburgh society reorganised itself around this new elite composed mainly of tradesmen. With the aristocracy, they were …

Laughter [ Communication ]

… quite like laughter. Practices > Communication Keywords Laughter humour Wit Taste Politeness impoliteness Manners civil society In May 1787, author-turned cleric Thomas Monro devoted an issue of his short-lived periodical to the topic of … targeted appropriately, laughter could also demonstrate and promote good taste – the ubiquitous aspiration of polite society. The German philosopher Georg Friedrich Meier (1718-1777) epitomised this sentiment in his 200-page exposition on … Proof of a refined Taste, never to jest but in a sprightly Manner, and never to approve but sprightly Jests. 6 In a society in which it was the worst of all social crimes to be considered a dullard, the capacity to jest appropriately, …