Enlightenment and Freedom of the Press: The Debate in the Berlin Mittwochsgesellschaft, 1783–1784

Abstract

The Berlin Mittwochsgesellschaft was a semisecret society (active from 1783 to 1798) which consisted of leading members of the enlightened Prussian intelligentsia who discussed a wide variety of topics. In 1783–4 this society debated the issue of the freedom of the press, often seen as a subject dear to the heart of liberal, enlightened men. The society was divided, however, between those who, believing the masses were incapable of rational action, opposed press freedom, and those who, believing the masses could be educated and enlightened, favoured a free press. The issue of press censorship was therefore a central subject of debate. Most members defended the secretive, absolutist state and argued that censorship was a necessary part of a comprehensive body of legislation; others argued that freedom of the press must include the right to criticize social and political conditions, but there were few traces of the classic enlightened demand for freedom of the press as an inalienable human right. The enlightened elite in this Prussian society did not firmly support unlimited press freedom, largely because so many of its members were officials in the service of the state.