This dissertation examines how in eighteenth-century Europe, naturalists sought to study, grasp and capture the world of fish. Working on the intersection of the history of science and book history... Show moreThis dissertation examines how in eighteenth-century Europe, naturalists sought to study, grasp and capture the world of fish. Working on the intersection of the history of science and book history, this research aims to shed light on how naturalists came to present themselves as authorities in an emerging field. It does so by focussing on a set of ‘fish books’, i.e., natural historical works that describe and depict fish. The first is Francis Willughby and John Ray’s "Historia piscium" (Oxford, 1686); the second Peter Artedi’s "Ichthyologia sive opera omnia de piscibus" (Leiden, 1738), and the third Marcus Élieser Bloch’s twelve volume series "Allgemeine Naturgeschichte der Fische" (Berlin, 1782–1795). These works are analysed alongside correspondences, manuscripts and natural historical collections. Together, these sources show that the development of the study of fish in this period can be best be understood as a process of continuous demarcation. This dissertation argues that the study of fish was subject to recurrent debates on subject, method and practitioner, and that such discussions were of both epistemological and social nature. In presenting their fish books, naturalists leveraged such discussions as to secure a place for themselves in the capricious environment of early modern natural history. Show less
The dissertation focuses on the work of German philosophers Theodor W. Adorno and Max Horkheimer, founders of critical theory at the Frankfurt School. Specifically, it is a study of the “early”... Show moreThe dissertation focuses on the work of German philosophers Theodor W. Adorno and Max Horkheimer, founders of critical theory at the Frankfurt School. Specifically, it is a study of the “early” writings, dated between 1925 and 1940, to reconstruct the early stages of critical theory. The thesis argues that the critique of metaphysics is the philosophical project of critical theory. This argument is sustained by reconstructing this new materialism through the emergence of the concepts of history and society, human and nature, memory and suffering, domination and emancipation as crucial elements in the theories of both authors. This reconstruction leads to the implications of philosophical materialism into the development of the social theory and political philosophy of both authors. This perspective argues for throughout this study and defines the central themes that guided this materialism until the critical theory was postulated as an established research program. Show less
This study investigates the development between 1550 to 1630 of Southern Netherlandish animal imagery into an autonomous genre in relation to developments in natural history, networks of artists... Show moreThis study investigates the development between 1550 to 1630 of Southern Netherlandish animal imagery into an autonomous genre in relation to developments in natural history, networks of artists and scientists and elite collecting practices in order to gain insight into the production, function, and meaning of animal imagery. Before 1600 in Antwerp motifs circulated by means of an extensive network, through which animal drawings and print series flourished. Around 1600 in Prague a new medium blossomed: the exotic animal painting. With the new medium it appears that the circulation of motifs diminished and no new print series were published. Artists started studying animals from life in meangeries and naturalia collctions. The relation of the artworks to natural history also changed. Before 1600 artists copied motifs from illustrations in natural historical publications and paid much attentio to the order of the species. After 1600 artists strove to depict species that were not yet described and illustrated by natural historians and consequently contributed to and disseminated knowledge about these new species. Show less
The German chemist-apothecary Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt (1773-1854) offers a fascinating window on Dutch culture and society in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. By providing an... Show moreThe German chemist-apothecary Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt (1773-1854) offers a fascinating window on Dutch culture and society in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. By providing an in-depth analysis of his multi-faceted career in the Netherlands and the Malay Archipelago, this study sheds light on the co-evolutionary character of science, governance, and empire. It argues that seeds of Reinwardt’s professional flexibility lay in his practical training in one of Amsterdam’s chemical workshops and his socialization in a broader cultural context where the improvement of society and economy played a crucial role. Show less
