British Literature and Technology, 1600-1830

Enlightenment-era writers were attracted to and repelled by technology, and this volume explores the impact of literature on conceptions of, attitudes toward, and implementations of technology. It offers a counterbalance to studies on literature and science in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Britain and shows how literature provided important sites for readers to recognize themselves as "chimeras" and explore the modern self as "a creature of social reality as well as a creature of fiction."

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 214 pages
Publication date: 13 January 2023
Publisher: Bucknell University Press,U.S.

Enlightenment-era writers were not yet accustomed to taking technology for granted, but they were nonetheless drawn to and repelled by its potential. This volume chronicles the profound history of such ambivalence, exploring the influence of technology on Enlightenment British literature and the impact of literature on conceptions, attitudes, and implementations of technology. Offering a refreshing counterbalance to the numerous studies on literature and science in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Britain, this volume's focus spans approaches to literary history that shed light on technologies like the steam engine and telegraph, as well as representations of technology in literature, such as the "political machine." Contributors ultimately demonstrate how literature across genres served as vital platforms for Enlightenment readers to recognize themselves as "chimeras"—"hybrids of machine and organism"—and to explore the modern self as a creature of social reality and fiction.

Enlightenment-era writers were not yet accustomed to taking technology for granted, but they were nonetheless drawn to and repelled by its potential. This volume chronicles the profound history of such ambivalence, exploring the influence of technology on Enlightenment British literature and the impact of literature on conceptions, attitudes, and implementations of technology. Offering a refreshing counterbalance to the numerous studies on literature and science in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Britain, this volume's focus spans approaches to literary history that shed light on technologies like the steam engine and telegraph, as well as representations of technology in literature, such as the "political machine." Contributors ultimately demonstrate how literature across genres served as vital platforms for Enlightenment readers to recognize themselves as "chimeras"—"hybrids of machine and organism"—and to explore the modern self as a creature of social reality and fiction.

Weight: 59g
Dimension: 235 x 156 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781684483952