Ebook: Botanophilia in Eighteenth-Century France: The Spirit of the Enlightenment

The book describes the innovations that enabled botany, in the Eighteenth century, to emerge as an independent science, independent from medicine and herbalism. This encompassed the development of a reliable system for plant classification and the invention of a nomenclature that could be universally applied and understood. The key that enabled Linnaeus to devise his classification system was the discovery of the sexuality of plants. The book, which is intended for the educated general reader, proceeds to illustrate how many aspects of French life were permeated by this revolution in botany between about 1760 to 1815, a botanophilia sometimes inflated into botanomania. The reader should emerge with a clearer understanding of what the Enlightenment actually was in contrast to some popular second-hand ideas today.

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The book describes the innovations that enabled botany, in the Eighteenth century, to emerge as an independent science, independent from medicine and herbalism. This encompassed the development of a reliable system for plant classification and the invention of a nomenclature that could be universally applied and understood. The key that enabled Linnaeus to devise his classification system was the discovery of the sexuality of plants. The book, which is intended for the educated general reader, proceeds to illustrate how many aspects of French life were permeated by this revolution in botany between about 1760 to 1815, a botanophilia sometimes inflated into botanomania. The reader should emerge with a clearer understanding of what the Enlightenment actually was in contrast to some popular second-hand ideas today.

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The book describes the innovations that enabled botany, in the Eighteenth century, to emerge as an independent science, independent from medicine and herbalism. This encompassed the development of a reliable system for plant classification and the invention of a nomenclature that could be universally applied and understood. The key that enabled Linnaeus to devise his classification system was the discovery of the sexuality of plants. The book, which is intended for the educated general reader, proceeds to illustrate how many aspects of French life were permeated by this revolution in botany between about 1760 to 1815, a botanophilia sometimes inflated into botanomania. The reader should emerge with a clearer understanding of what the Enlightenment actually was in contrast to some popular second-hand ideas today.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-v
Prologue....Pages 1-8
Sebastien Vaillant and the Sexuality of Plants....Pages 9-18
Linnaeus, Prince of Botanists....Pages 19-30
Bernard de Jussieu and the Petit Trianon....Pages 31-44
The Buffon Phenomenon....Pages 45-56
From Jussieu to Candolle....Pages 57-70
Plants and Medical Practices....Pages 71-86
The Amiable Science and Sensibility....Pages 87-101
Public Botanophilia: Floras....Pages 102-120
Public Botanophilia: Learned Societies and Eminent Botanophiles....Pages 121-140
Painting and Gardening: The Blending of Science and Art....Pages 141-161
The Botanophiles Confront Deforestation....Pages 162-173
Epilogue....Pages 174-176
Finale....Pages 177-178
Back Matter....Pages 179-206

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The book describes the innovations that enabled botany, in the Eighteenth century, to emerge as an independent science, independent from medicine and herbalism. This encompassed the development of a reliable system for plant classification and the invention of a nomenclature that could be universally applied and understood. The key that enabled Linnaeus to devise his classification system was the discovery of the sexuality of plants. The book, which is intended for the educated general reader, proceeds to illustrate how many aspects of French life were permeated by this revolution in botany between about 1760 to 1815, a botanophilia sometimes inflated into botanomania. The reader should emerge with a clearer understanding of what the Enlightenment actually was in contrast to some popular second-hand ideas today.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-v
Prologue....Pages 1-8
Sebastien Vaillant and the Sexuality of Plants....Pages 9-18
Linnaeus, Prince of Botanists....Pages 19-30
Bernard de Jussieu and the Petit Trianon....Pages 31-44
The Buffon Phenomenon....Pages 45-56
From Jussieu to Candolle....Pages 57-70
Plants and Medical Practices....Pages 71-86
The Amiable Science and Sensibility....Pages 87-101
Public Botanophilia: Floras....Pages 102-120
Public Botanophilia: Learned Societies and Eminent Botanophiles....Pages 121-140
Painting and Gardening: The Blending of Science and Art....Pages 141-161
The Botanophiles Confront Deforestation....Pages 162-173
Epilogue....Pages 174-176
Finale....Pages 177-178
Back Matter....Pages 179-206
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