Abstract
The scientific journal Nature was first published as a weekly periodical in November of 1869 and has remained at the forefront of developments in scientific knowledge ever since. The title page of that first publication begins with a quotation from William Wordsworth, “To the solid ground Of Nature trusts the mind which builds for aye.” And then goes on with a series of aphorisms from Johann W Goethe. From this perspective science itself can be looked upon as the product of a romantic impulse. In this essay I will explore the relationships between the sciences and romanticism and the way they are integrally woven together. The use of the word “sciences” in its plural form is deliberate just as the title of the journal is in the singular Nature. Starting with William Blake and his criticism of David Hume’s removal of imagination from the conjunction of causes to their effects, I will explore William Blake’s Four Zoas, and the Industrial Revolution’s hegemony of Urizen (reason) at the expense of Tharmas (physical body), Luvah (love and emotions) and Urthona (imagination). Following Blake’s fourfold vision, I will develop a contemporary fourfold approach built around Res extensa (external world), Res cogitans (mental world), Res publica (collective consciousness) and Res individua (individual consciousness) and see if it sheds any light on our current environmental crisis.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The Palgrave Handbook of Nineteenth-Century Literature and Science. Edt. Pamala K Gilbert. |
| Publisher | Palgrave |
| Publication status | Submitted - 2025 |
Keywords
- Insustrial Revolution
- William Blake
- Romantic era
- Mundane Egg
- neo-Platonism