Visions of the Enlightenment : : the Edict on Religion of 1788 and the politics of the public sphere in eighteenth-century Prussia / / by Michael J. Sauter.

• Superior document: Brill's studies in intellectual history, v. 177
• Author: Sauter, Michael J.
• Place / Publishing House: Leiden ;, Boston : : Brill,, 2009.
• Year of Publication: 2009
• Edition: 1st ed.
• Language: English
• Series: Brill's studies in intellectual history ; v. 177.
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (xiv, 242 pages)
• Notes: Description based upon print version of record.

This book examines the public battle sparked by the promulgation in 1788 of Prussia's Edict on Religion. Historians have seen in this moment nothing less than the end of the Enlightenment in Prussia. This book begs to differ and argues that social control had a long \'enlightened\' pedigree. Using both archival and published documents, this book reveals deeply the entire Prussian elite was invested in social control of the masses, especially in the public sphere. What emerges is a picture of the Enlightenment in Prussia as a conservative enterprise that was limited by not merely the state but also the social anxities of the Prussian elite.

Table of Contents

The Frederickian monarchy and the Enlightenment in Prussia -- The ponytail, the enthusiast, and the "enlightened" public sphere -- The Enlightenment on trial -- Conscience and the rhetoric of freedom -- Counting the Enlightenment -- What was Enlightenment? -- Conclusion -- Appendix A: All texts (120) published in response to the edict -- Appendix B: Reviews (57) not published in the "Allgemeine deutsche Bibliothek" -- Appendix C: On the philosophical debate on the nature and boundaries of the Enlightenment.