S C I E N C E   &  T H E   P U B L I C   S P H E R E
Readings in the History of Science
HIS 6488 - Autumn 2006 - Thursday - 7.00-10.00pm - 230 CBD
Dr Robert A. Hatch - Department of History - 226 Keene-Flint Hall - 392.0271




This Graduate Readings Seminar in the History of Science is entitled 'Science & the Public Sphere'. Seminar readings are designed to trace the background and emergence of a 'scientific community' as an intellectual and social component of the modern political state, and increasingly, in the international and global community. While addressing issues that extend back to forms of education and communication in antiquity and the medieval period, the focus of change is early modern Europe as it extended into the Enlightenment. Principal topics incude education, early universities, the Renaissance recovery of ancient texts, the role of the printing press, humanist learning, informal learned societies and cabinets devoted to 'natural philosophy', public forums (Conferences of Renaudot), correspondence networks (Mersenne, Boulliau, Hartlib, Oldenburg) semi-private societies, (Academie Montmor), the place of learned journals (Journal des scavans; Philosophical Transactions), the origins and evolution of the Académie des Sciences and the Royal Society of London, the Republic of Letters, the Salon Movement, the Encyclopedic Movement, and finally, the role of Enlightenment intellectuals in revolutionary change (for example, the French Revolution). If the principal themes and readings are historical, the theoretical background is supplied by a vast scholarly literature touching on education, theories of exchange (from gift giving to patronage), theories of reading and the book, and numerous questions associated with the public sphere (most stemming from Jurgen Habermas) as well as themes connecting antiquarianism, cosmopolitanism, nationalism, the Commonwealth of Learning, and what has recently been called globalization.
A principal objective of this course is to identify and engage classic works in the History of Science in concert with recent critical studies. Readings will cut across disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, across the History of Ideas, Intellectual History, Cultural and Social History, as well as varieties of the New Social and the New Cultural History. Some studies are prosoprograhic, others represent social and institutional history. In sum, this seminar is designed to identify a wide stretch of chronological, geographical, topical, and methodological real estate. It is also designed as an advanced overview of the major schools of thinking (humanities, social science, critical theory) that represent and challenge traditional views of human nature and social organization, different ontologies and epistemologies. The theme of 'Science & the Public Sphere' aims to suggests a series of disjunctures that have blurred genres (from the History of Ideas to the New Eclecticism) and how these approaches have subverted boundaries between history, sociology, anthropology, political theory, literature, philosophy, and critical theory. A central concern is to identify assumptions and to assess how writing history has become increasingly problematized.

Format. The seminar is in two parts. Part I consists of critical readings of shared materials. Part II concludes the seminar with the presentation, defense, and critical appraisal of each participant's Last Research Seminar Essay {circa 20pp}. Details about the seminar final essay will be discussed in class. In brief, seminar participants will select, compare, and analyze significant works from their area of specialization (geographical, chronological, thematic), there linking and focusing on the principal issues of the course. The final form of the Last Essay should be mechanically flawless; thereafter, expressions of genius will be less stridently evaluated. Slipshod essays will not be accepted. All work must be completed to receive seminar credit.

Participants are expected to take an active part in Seminar discussions and to present their research and Last Seminar Essay to a critical audience. Each requirement is built into the Seminar schedule. Attendance and participation are strictly mandatory. Office hours for Professor Hatch are Thursday, 4.00 - 7.00pm and by appointment, 226 Keene-Flint Hall; Communications: Telephone: 392-0271 (24h machine) but best by E-Mail: ufhatch@ufl.edu . Seminar participants are strongly encouraged to take full advantage of Office Hours. Importantly, good communication is essential and assumed. Finally, sections of my WebSite are devoted to this course.  Students are required to visit appropriate sections which can be located at:    http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/rhatch/pages.  Please read the University statement of Academic Honesty. Participants will be added to a class ListServe cum potential Chat Page. Further information of this and other matters will be discussed at our first class meeting. Books are available at: Gator Textbook, Creekside Mall, 3501 SW 2nd Avenue, Suite D: 374.4500; for further information see their WebSite: http://www.gatortextbooks.com



Required Readings: {Exclusive Order: Gator Textbook}


Harcourt Brown, Scientific Organizations in Seventeenth Century France (or Hahn)
Robert Darnton. Mesmerism & the End of the Enlightenment in France
Elizabeth Eisenstein. The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe
Jürgen Habermas, The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere
Thomas L. Hankins. Science and the Enlightenment
Thomas S. Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Robert Mandrou, From Humanism to Science
Stephen Shapin. A Social History of Truth
David Sturdy. Science & Social Status (and/or Brown)
Geoffrey V. Sutton. Science for a Polite Society: Gender, Culture, and the Demonstration of Enlightenment
Kathleen Wellman. Making Science Social: The Conferences of Théophraste Renaudot, 1633-1642

A number of E-Text articles will be assigned, most are freely available at JSTOR; in addition, please note that some of the titles above are Out of Print. I urge participants to check American Book Exchange, http://www.abebooks.com/ - as always, better now than later.


Recommended:
Mario Biagioli. Galileo, Courtier.
J.B. Bury. The Idea of Progress.

Herbert J. Butterfield. The Origins of Modern Science
Rober Chartier, ed. The Culture of Print
Robert Darnton. The Great Cat Massacre
N-Z Davis, The Return of Martin Guerre {& Davis vs. Finlay, AHR}

Michel Foucault, Madness and Civilization
Clifford Geertz, Local Knowledge: Further Essays in Interpretive Anthropology

Charles C. Gillispie. Science & Polity in France: The Revolutionary & Napoleanic Years
Carlo Ginsberg, The Cheese and the Worms: The Cosmos of a Sixteenth-Century Miller
Anne Goldar. Impolite Learning: Conduct and Community in the Republic of Letters, 1680-1750
Dena Goodman. The Republic of Letters: A Cultural History of the French Enlightenment

Warren O. Hagstrom. The Scientific Community

Roger Hahn, The Anatomy of a Scientific Institution
Thomas L. Hankins. Science and the Enlightenment

Jonathan I. Israel. Radical Enlightenment: Philosophy and the Making of Modernity, 1650-1750

Adrian Johns. The Nature of the Book
S. Kettering. Patrons, Brokers, and Clients in Seventeenth-Century France
Alexandre Koyré. From Closed Cosmos to Infinite Universe.

Michael McKeon. The Origins of the English Novel, 1600-1740
Edward Said. Orientalism.

S. Shapin & S. Shafer. The Leviathan & the Air Pump.
Geoffrey V. Sutton. Science for a Polite Society: Gender, Culture, and the Demonstration of Enlightenment
Ira Wade. The Intellectual Origins of the French Enlightenment
Hayden White, Tropics of Discourse: Essays in Cultural Criticism [See H. White Bibliography]

Alfred North Whitehead. Science & the Modern World.


Group Readings are included in the attached Bibliography
Seminar Requirements
Critiques of each required text & Seminar Participation {40%}:
Each participant is required to write a critical review of each required book; guidelines for scholarly reviews will be provided. In addition to the traditional concerns of the reviewer, required critiques for each book {750 words: 3 pages typed} must situate the text in its historiographic tradition. Group discussion centers on the shared readings. Critiques are preparation for detailed and thoughtful seminar discussion. Consistent and appropriate participation in seminar discussion is essential and should be understood as mandatory. If seminar participants find it difficult to participate it is important to discuss participation strategies with the instructor at the first opportunity. Hatch Mantra One: When in Doubt: Read the Syllabus; Read Ahead; Ask Questions.

Discussion Leader {5%}:
Seminar participants are required to lead discussion at two shared readings sessions in Part I and again in Part II. In Part I discussion leaders are responsible, after completing a very close reading of the text, for providing an introduction to the text {10 minutes} and then to assist in leading discussion for the duration of the seminar session. In Part II, participants present an outline of their seminar Essay (including thesis, purpose, and objective statements). Consistent and appropriate participation in seminar discussion is essential and should be understood as mandatory.

Last Seminar Essay {50%}:
Although this is Seminar is designed as an introduction--designed to help prepare participants for Preliminary and Qualifying Examinations--it also provides an opportunity for writing a Non-Thesis essay. Research time has been carefully allotted to enable participants to select, research, and write a seminar Essay {circa 20 pages}. The major requirement of the seminar is to write, present, and defend a solid piece of historical writing based on issues drawn from the readings. Each author will also provide an Oral Presentation of the Last Essay following a Oral Critique by a Peer Reader. Details will be discussed in class.

Seminar Peer Reader {5%}:
Each participant is responsible for serving as 'Seminar Peer Reader' for the Last Essay of a fellow seminar participant. This will require a critical but sensitive reading of the Essay--isolating the strong and weak points in structure, argument, and style--with particular emphasis on how the Essay might be improved. Consistent and meaningful participation in seminar discussion is essential. Strategies for appropriate participation will be discussed. All seminar requirements must be completed to received seminar credit.

Further particulars regarding format will be discussed in seminar.

 



 


SCIENCE & THE PUBLIC SPHERE
Readings in the History of Science - Dr Robert A. Hatch

226 Keene-Flint Hall - 392.0271
Autumn 2006 - Thursday 7.00-10.00pm - CBD 230

Week I: 24 August
Plotting Our Course: What is science, history, community, change?

Readings
- Survey & all texts; read Intros of each
Begin for next week: Shapin, Scientific Revolution
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.



Week II:
31 August - Robert Mandrou, From Humanism to Science
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:

1.

2.



Week III:
7 September - Harcourt Brown, Scientific Organizations in Seventeenth Century France
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders: 

1.

2.



Week IV:
14 September - Kathleen Wellman. Making Science Social: The Conferences of Théophraste Renaudot, 1633-1642
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:
1.

2.



Week V: 21 September - Elizabeth Eisenstein - The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:
1.

2.



Week VI: 28 September -
T.S. Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:
1.
2.


Week VII:
5 October -
Shapin. A Social History of Truth
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:
1.

2.



Week VIII: 12 October - Darnton - Mesmerism & the End of the Enlightenment; or: David Sturdy. Science & Social Status;
Recommended: Thomas L. Hankins. Science and the Enlightenment
Also, locate at least 2 reviews, make copies, share with seminar participants.
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:
1. 

2.


Week IX: 19 October - Geoffrey V. Sutton. Science for a Polite Society: Gender, Culture, and the Demonstration of Enlightenment
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:
1.

2.


Week X: 26 October - Jürgen Habermas, The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed; Please see electronic bibliography.
Discussion Leaders:
1.

2.


Week XI: 2 November - Critiques of J ürgen Habermas & Uses of the Public Sphere
Articles & Reviews to be annnounced or confirmed. Readings will include a number of articles and reviews focusing on Habermas and the question of the 'Public Sphere'. Please see electronic bibliography.

Full Group Participation with Individual Presentations & Group Discussion
 


Week XII: 9 November - Individual Meetings - Research Preparation


Week XIII: 16 November - Towards Synthesis:
Pre-Essay Defense Oral Presentation (Ten Minutes - Mantra) - Group Discussion


Week XIV: 23 November: NO CLASS - Thanksgiving Holiday

NB: Last Essays for Week XV are due Sunday, 26 November, 12-Noon,
E-Mail Attachment in PDF (or RTF Attachment) and Embedded in Email Text, paginated).


Week XV: 30 November
Seminar Last Essay Presentations


1.a. Essay Author - Presenter:

1.b. Seminar Peer Reader: 

2.a. Essay Author - Presenter:
2.b. Seminar Peer Reader:


3.a. Essay Author - Presenter:

3.b. Seminar Peer Reader: 


4.a. Essay Author - Presenter:

4.b. Seminar Peer Reader:


5.a. Essay Author - Presenter:
5.b. Seminar Peer Reader:


6.a. Essay Author - Presenter:

6.b. Seminar Peer Reader:

7.a. Essay Author - Presenter:
7.b. Seminar Peer Reader:


Etc.


Week XVI: 7 December {NB: No Class: UF Classes End 6 December}


******************************************************************
NB: Seminar Essays are due in final form on date of distribution.
If you wish to have your Last Essay returned, kindly supply a 9x12 envelope with appropriate postage and address. Last Essays will not otherwise be returned or retained. To discuss your Last Essay and Seminar performance (a very good idea) please make an appointment during our last seminar meeting.

*******************************************************





Modern Historiography Toward History of Science
Background & Reference

Articles, Chapters & Essays:
Dr Robert A. Hatch - University of Florida

Introductions {3}: Historians at work, edited by Peter Gay & Gerald J. Cavanaugh. 3 volumes, Harper & Row, New York, 1972-1975.

Davis, Natalie Z. 'Anthropology and history in the 1980s.' The new history: The 1980s and beyond, edited by Theodore K. Rabb and Robert I. Rotberg. Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1982.

Bouwsma, William J. 'Intellectual history in the 1980s.' {with response of Joel Colton}. The new history: The 1980s and beyond, edited by Theodore K. Rabb and Robert I. Rotberg. Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1982.

Sterns, Peter N. 'Toward a wider vision: Trends in social history.' The past before us: Contemporary historical writing in the United States, edited by Michael Kammen. Cornell University Press, Ithaca and London, 19xx.

Darnton, Robert. 'Intellectual and cultural history.' The past before us: Contemporary historical writing in the United States, edited by Michael Kammen. Cornell University Press, Ithaca and London, 19xx.

Walsh, W.H. 'History and the sciences;' 'Historical explanation;' and Truth and fact in history.' Philosophy of history: An introduction. Harper, New York, 19xx.

Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich. Lectures on the philosophy of world history. Translated by H.B. Nisbet, with an Introduction by Duncan Forbes. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1975.

Marx, Karl. 'Critique of Hegel's philosophy of right.' Karl Marx: Early writings. New York, 19xx.

Durkheim, Emile. 'Introduction.' Suicide: A study in sociology. Translated by John A. Spaulding and George Simpson, edited with an introduction by George Simpson. Free Press, New York, 1951.

Weber, Max. Max Weber on law in economy and society. 'Introduction' and 'Basic concepts of sociology.' Simon and Schuster, New York, 1954.

Veblen, Thorstein. 'Foreword,' 'The theory of the leisure class' and 'The higher learning as an expression of the pecuniary culture.' Modern Library, New York, 1931.

Merton, Robert K. 'Introduction' and 'The sociology of knowledge.' Social structure, Revised and enlarged edition, Free Press, New York, 1949.

Dilthey, Wilhelm. 'Individual life and its meaning;' 'The historical approach and the order of the human world' and 'Meaning and historical relativity.' Pattern & meaning in history: Thoughts on history & society. Edited & introduced by H. P. Rickman. Harper & Row, New York, 1961.

Emerson, Ralph Waldo. 'History.' Essays. To be read with: Cavell, Stanley. 'The ordinary as the uneventful (a note on the Annales historians). Themes out of school: Effects and causes. University of Chicago Press, Chicago and London, 1983.

Geertz, Clifford. 'Thick description: Toward an interpretive theory of culture' and 'Deep play: Notes on the Balinese cockfight.' The interpretation of cultures: Selected essays. Basic Books, New York.

-----. 'Introduction' and 'Blurred genres: The refiguration of social thought.' Local knowledge: Further essays in interpretive anthropology. Basic Books, New York.

Vovelle, Michel. 'Introduction: Ideologies and mentalities--a necessary clarification;' ' Hearts and minds: Can we write religious history from the traces?;' Relevance and ambiguity of literary evidence;' and 'The longue durée.' Ideologies and mentalities, translated by Eamon O'Flaherty, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1990.

Finlay, Robert. 'AHR forum: The return of Martin Guerre; The refashioning of Martin Guerre.' AHR, to be read with: Davis, Natalie Zemon. 'AHR forum: The return of Martin Guerre; 'On the lame.'

Chartier, Roger. 'Introduction' and 'Intellectual history and the history of mentalités: A dual re-evaluation.' Cultural history: Between practices and representations. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, New York, 1988.

Thompson, E. P. 'Introduction: Custom and culture.' Customs in common. The New Press, New York.



rah.2006

Questions?  Please E-Me: ufhatch@ufl.edu

BACK - HOME