Work, Machines, and Vapors in Late Eighteenth-Century France

Authors

Laura C. Balladur, Bates CollegeFollow

Publication Title

Civilization in French and Francophone Literature

Document Type

Book Chapter

Department or Program

French

Publication Date

1-1-2006

Abstract

Late eighteenth-century France saw the development of the machine’s first theoretical model, elaborated by Lazare Carnot. Alongside this development in mechanics, physiological treatises continued the tradition of describing the mind in terms of work. Moreover, a number of treatises emerged that attempted to define an elusive ailment, subsequently known as hysteria. A close reading of one such treatise by the Montpellier-trained physician Beauchêne brings into focus how late eighteenth-century physiology reflected a period-specific anxiety, which the work of Carnot only made too obvious: the irreversible arrow of time, the inevitable development (and progress) of civilization.

Comments

Original version is available from the publisher at: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004333055_010

Recommended Citation

Balladur, L. C. (2006). Work, Machines, and Vapors in Late Eighteenth-Century France. In Civilization in French and Francophone Literature (Vol. 33, pp. 159–170). Brill.