Chapter 17.2: Culture and Society in an age of EnlightenmentBY HUNTER, XANDRA, AND JARED

I. Innovations in Art, Music, and Literature

A. Rococo – Watteau and Newmann

A new style in 1730’s affecting decoration and architecture. Works spoke of pursuit of happiness, pleasure and love.

Antoine Watteau – focused of upper class in fine dress. There is an undertone of sadness with revealed fragility and transitory nature of pleasure, love, and life.

Balthasar Neumann –made pilgrimage to Vierzehnheligen in southern Germany and to Residenz, and saw the bright colors and rich details in the architecture.

B. Neoclassicism - David

Recaptures dignity and simplicity of classical styles of ancient Greece and Rome. David showed a moral seriousness, with an emphasis on honor and patriotism.

C. Baroque Music

Perfected by Bach and Handel. Bounces between secular and religious tones.

D. Classical Music

Orchestral music, perfected by Hadyn and Mozart. Music empire shifted from Germany and Italy to Austria.

E. Development of the Novel

Novel was not completely new literary genre but grew out of medieval romances and picaresque stories of the sixteenth century. The English are responsible for Novels being the modern-day foundation of fictional writing. It was a new genre and open to experimentation.

Samuel Johnson and Henry Fielding differed greatly from each other on both emotional and action based movements.

F. The Writing of History

Philosophers were completely secular, which allowed for better focus on portraying actual events instead of religious tendencies.

Historians paid attention to economic, social, cultural, and intellectual developments along with politics.

II. The High Culture of the Eighteenth Century

A. Differentiate between high culture and popular culture

Historians and cultural anthropologists intentionally distinguish between high and popular culture –

High culture is very educated while popular culture is written and unwritten love; very large masses of people.

B. Describe the High Culture

The educated and wealthy were very prominent in this group. All were educated in artistic culture or literature. Consisted of learned theologians, scientists, philosophers, intellectuals, poets, and dramatists.

1. An Increased Readership

The increase in education and readership of the public caused a growth of at least three hundred titles, however there was a small amount of growth in reading for the middle class.

2. Education and Universities

There was an increase in the number of schools and places of education at this time:

Many secondary schools, including grammar and public schools, as well as gymnasiums opened in German and surrounding areas, while Universities and Colleges were founded in France and Spain.

Usually catered to the upper class, these establishments focused on the education of the Greek and Latin languages, basic mathematics, science, and modern language.

3. Crime and Punishment – Cesare Beccaria

At the time, most European governments had a hierarchy of courts to deal with crime.

England still allowed judicial torture, however instrumental torture was mainly used to gain confessions from criminals.

Brutal Executions and forced labor were common punishments.

Cesare Beccaria thought that physical punishments should be deterrents against crime with little bodily harm done to the criminal.

Capital punishments were ineffective, imprisonments were favorable.

4. Reforms in Medicine

Physicians came from universities and had a high social status. Universities taught the outdated works of Galen despite scientific advancements in medicine. Clinical methods were slowly introduced to Universities.

Physicians had to be licensed before granted to see patients, and received outrageous payments for their work. Surgeons operated in filthy conditions without anesthetics.

Medical reform came in the 1740’s by studying anatomy, dissecting corpses, and other things.

III. Popular Culture

A. Festivals and Carnivals

Celebrated in the weeks before lint, they were times of great indulgence.

Loads of hearty food were consumed, there was heavy drinking, as well as intense sexual activities (all contrary to the religious holiday soon to come).

B. Local Taverns and Drinking Habits

Similar to carnivals conditions, the poor would themselves to death and was a hotspot for indulging in pleasures.

D. Chapbooks

Short brochures sold by itinerate peddlers to the lower classes. They contained spiritual and secular materials.

Was basically a newspaper conveying popular ideas of the time.

Proved that Europe’s ability to change depended on literacy.

E. Spread of Literacy and Increase in Primary Education

Allowed Europe to change over time, for example:

Rich and wealthy became literate.Professional reformers pushed for

the reading of the Bible, and encourage literacy.

IV. The Institutional Church

A. Background

In the 1700’s, the established institutional churches were conservative institutions that upheld hierarchical structure, privileged classes, and traditions (did not change drastically).

B. Church-State Relations

In 1700, the catholic church held much power over the catholic states, remaining hierarchal structured.

By the eighteenth century, papal power had declined dramatically.

C. Toleration and Religious Minorities

Chief battle cry of philosophers.While some rulers were tolerant,

most believed that there was only one path to salvation.

D. Toleration and the Jews

Remained the despised religious minority in Europe.

Frequent outbursts of popular wrath in which Jewish communities were looted and massacred.

Some, however few enlightenment thinkers favored Jewish acceptance.

V. Popular Religion in the Eighteenth Century

A. Background

Religious devotion remained strong in eighteenth century – rise of skepticism.

B. Catholic Piety

Despite the reformation, popular devotion was still focused on an externalized form of worship. This disturbed many clergyman, who believed that their parishioners were “more superstitious than the devout.”

C. Protestant Revivalism

1. Background

Protestant churches in the 17th century had settled into established patterns.

They became bureaucratized and bereft of religious enthusiasm.

2. Pietism and Moravian Brethren

Pietism was the response to the desire of a deeper, more personal connection with God.

3. John Wesley and Methodism

John Wesley – ordained Anglican minister (1703-1791). He had a spiritual crisis and underwent a mystical experience. God’s grace assured his salvation, and he became a missionary to the english. He began preaching in open fields to everyone, and the converted would go to Methodist societies / chapels to aid one another with good works.

Methodism was important to the revival of spiritual experience in Christianity.