The World in Time / Lapham’s Quarterly
Episode 95: Andrea Wulf
Sep 23, 2022
Andrea Wulf, author and historian, joins Lewis H. Lapham to discuss 'Magnificent Rebels: The First Romantics and the Invention of the Self.' They explore the origins of self-centeredness, individual empowerment, and the interplay between individual identity and group membership. They discuss the scandalous personal lives and impact of German Romantics in 18th-century Germany, revealing their contributions to philosophy and shaping modern concepts of identity and free will.
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Quick takeaways
- The book 'Magnificent Rebels: The First Romantics and the Invention of the Self' explores how influential German intellectuals reshaped our understanding of the self and its relationship to the world in the late 18th century.
- Jena, a small German university town, offered a unique environment in the 1790s for freedom of thought and expression, attracting liberal-minded thinkers and becoming a hotbed of intellectual activity.
Deep dives
The Origins of Magnificent Rebels
The author, Andrea Wolfe, explains that her interest in the book was sparked while researching her previous work on German scientist Alexander von Humboldt. She discovered a small town in Germany, Jena, where numerous influential German intellectuals and philosophers lived in the 1790s. This group, known as the "Yena set," included celebrated figures like Goethe, Schiller, Fichte, and Hegel. Inspired by their radical ideas and focus on the self, Wolfe delves into their stories to uncover how they reshaped our understanding of the individual and its relationship to the world.
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