Cultural Transfers: France and Britain in the Long Eighteenth Century ed. by Ann Thomson, et al

Abstract

Roland Barthes dans ses Mythologies, ouvrage à consulter en contrepoint de celui de Marzorati). Si l’aspect impressionniste ou anecdotique de chaque mini-récit est le plus souvent privilégié, Marzorati l’accompagne toutefois de précisions historiques ou statistiques: “En province, dans les 60 agglomérations de plus de 30 000 habitants, un bon quart des logements n’ont ni eau ni électricité” (16). D’une écriture limpide, souvent marquée par un humour discret mais efficace, ce livre à la fois léger et informatif se révèle agréable et utile à lire. À recommander à tous ceux qui connaissent mal cette période historique pourtant décisive pour les institutions françaises. Western Washington University Edward Ousselin THOMSON, ANN, SIMON BURROWS, and EDMOND DZIEMBOWSKI, eds. Cultural Transfers: France and Britain in the Long Eighteenth Century. SVEC 2010:04. Oxford: Voltaire Foundation, 2010. ISBN 978-0-7294-0993-3. Pp. 326. $115. This scholarly volume contains nineteen articles divided into three categories: correspondence and networks, journalism, and translations. All address the concept of “cultural transfers” in the broadest sense, with Britain and France choosing eclectically. This century considered French culture and language the norm, and the British parliamentary system attracted visionary thinkers. A recurrent influence was the émigré Huguenot population, numbering about 200,000. Many of them settled in Holland, and thus served as intermediaries for the transmission of the new ideas. Ironically, Louis XIV’s revocation of the Edict of Nantes, intended to strengthen the monarchy, indirectly contributed to its downfall. The first and longest section deals with various types of correspondence, including diplomatic correspondence. The ambassadors reported not only on their mission, but on the entire state of affairs in the host country. Not all correspondence was friendly. The rivalry between the British and French Free Masons, in which the former considered themselves the supreme authority, found expression in a lively and sometimes acerbic exchange. This section also addresses networks which promoted the spread of ideas. Pierre Des Maizeaux, who figures prominently in several essays in this volume, was a Huguenot refugee in London. His work as journalist, editor, and biographer, as well as his involvement with the British Royal Society, enabled him to establish influential contacts. Networks also developed for scientific and medical purposes. The University of Montpellier became the center for “holistic medicine” and Linnaean biology. Montpellier exchanged with other centers, particularly in the North, maintaining a largely Protestant ethic. A number of scholars came from the British Isles, notably Ireland, where the study of medicine was forbidden to non-Protestants. Thus the diaspora created an international network. The section on journalism discusses the rise and fall of many periodicals, which circulated on the continent as well as in the British Isles. Medical journals promoted “la médecine de soi,” or proper hygiene and preventative medicine. Huguenots played a major role in distributing learned journals, instrumental in publicizing the works of John Locke. Other periodicals transmitted British ideas on religious freedom and the functioning of their political system. The Courier de l’Europe, a French-language journal first published in London in 1776, had an exceptionally long life span of fifty years. It owed its early success to its accounts of the American Revolution, which greatly interested Reviews 383 French readers. Finally, translations produced cultural transfers. In an intellectual world where French was the international language, the British had less need of translation than the French. When Louis XIV’s diplomats came to London to learn the English political system first-hand, they soon learned that they too needed translators. Pierre Des Maizeaux, the influential London-based Huguenot, was responsible for the translation of Anthony Collins’s controversial Philosophical Inquiry Concerning Human Liberty, a strong influence on French thought. Certain translators eliminated sections with which they disagreed, or interpreted them. An interesting example occurs where the translation of the word “commodities” in Hume implicitly signals the advent of modern capitalism. Although this volume is highly specialized, it can provide valuable information to all Enlightenment researchers. Because the space is limited to a short article, there are numerous references that will be unfamiliar to all but the most highly informed readers. Unfortunately, the articles cannot always discuss...