Editor's Note (1999)

Editor's Note Overthepasttenyearsormore,eighteenth-centuryscholarshavetakena livelyinterestinthequestionofthe"publicsphere."Spurredinitiallyby JÃ¼rgenHabermas'searlyStrukturwandelderÃ–ffentlichkeit,especiallyfol- lowingitstranslationsintoFrench(1978)andEnglish(1989),anincreas- inglydiverseandnuancedbodyofworkhasexploredthematerialanddis- cursiveconditionsunderwhich,inHabermas'swords,"privatepeoplecame togetherasapublic"intheearlymodernperiod.Habermas'sownwork, afterthesesocial-historicalbeginnings,ledhimtothemoreabstractphilo- sophicaltextsofthe70sand80s,significantpublicdebateswithHansGeorg GadamerandNiklasLÃ¼hmann,andhiselaborationof"communicativeac- tion"asameansofreconcilingthe"unfinishedproject"ofEnlightenment withthedemandsofmodernity.Althougheighteenth-centurystudieshasbeen lessquicktoassimilatetheselaterdevelopments,therewoulddoubtlessbe realvalueinahistoricizedreflectionontheideathat"therationaliswhat emergesfromafreeandunfettereddialogueamongallconcerned,"inphi- losopherLorenzoSimpson'ssuccinctformulation(Technology,Time,and theConversationsofModernity,1995).Therehasbeenmuchfinework producedinthepursuitofadeeperunderstandingofpublicandprivate.But, ifontheonehandthepublic/privatedistinctionofferedapowerfulconcep- tualtool,itsometimesencouragedreifieddichotomiesontheother.Thusit comesasapositivedevelopmentthatscholarsareturningtheirattentionto themultiplewaysinwhichthesecategoriesareconnected. SuchwerethethoughtsthatcametomeasIwasflyingfromBostonto RichmondinearlyDecember,1997,myattentiondividedbetweenthoughts oftheNEASECSconferenceI'djustleft,andthepileofrevisedSECCsubmissionsonmylap .Theessaysinthisvolume,asinpreviousyears,were presentedatdifferentplacesandatdifferenttimesduringtheacademicyear1996-97,atthemeetingsoftheAmericanSocietyforEighteenth-Century Studiesanditsaffiliates.Theywerereadbyseparateeditorialreaders;each wasselectedforitssignificancewithinitsownfieldaswellasforitspoten- tialinteresttoscholarsinotherareas.Few,ifany,oftheauthorsherewould haveexpectedtofindthemselvesinavolumeprefacedwithremarksonthe public/privatedistinction.Andyet,lookingoverthefinalselection,connec- Xl xii/Editor'sNote tionssuggestedthemselves,asdidtheideaofgivingasingletitletothe entirevolumeandaskingreaderstothinkaboutthepiecesinthatlight. Readingtheseessaystogetherreplicatesoneofthegreatstrengthsofthe nationalandregionalmeetingsofASECS,whereonecanwalkintoaroom andbeunexpectedlystruckbytheconnectionsamong,say,Italianliterary academies,Britishchinoiserie,andprostitution(totakethefirstthreeessays inthevolume)andrealizetheirrelevancetoastudyonVoltaire...Inaddi- tiontotheirindividualmerit,thesearticlesbespeakasubtlesea-changein thewaythatwehavecometoconceptualizepublicandprivate;or,toputit differently,thewaysinwhichourprofessionaldiscoursehassubsumedthose categoriesandproceededon:here,publicandprivatearenotsomuchsepa- rate"spheres"ascomplexlyconnectedzones.Certainly,asPeterReilPscon- cludingessayemphasizes,theEnlightenmentwasnostrangertomobileand criss-crossedcategoriesand"systems."Anumberoftheessaysthatfollow lookattheshareddiscursiveformationsthatstructurethemostintimateforms ofsubjectivity,whileothersconsidertheaffectiveandtemporaldimensions ofplaceandpublicspace.Theprivateambitionsandpassionsofpublicwriters (andviceversa),theentwinementofthepersonalandpoliticalinadvert- izing,fiction,andhistoriographyÂ—allthesesuggestwaysinwhichlocaland historicallypunctualstudiescanhelpusrefineourlargertheoreticalpara- digms.Ultimately,Iwouldargue,suchprojectsasthese,withtheircareful focusonthesitesandconditionsofdiscourse,willhelpussituate,analyze, andredefinewhatwemeanbysuchtermsas"unfetteredconversation"and even"rationality." ItakemyleaveofSECCwithanexpressionofprofoundgratitudetoward allwholenttheirtimeandtalenttothisproject:AssociateEditorTimErwin, themembersoftheEditorialBoard,andthehundred-plusmembersofASECS whoparticipatedinthereviewprocessthispastyear.Specialthanksto CharlesH.Hinnant,whoalsorotatesofftheboardwithvolume28,and whoseprofessionalism,criticalacumen,andwithavebeenagreatsourceof strength.Thankstootomygraduateassistant,CatherineConstantino,forher helpwiththecopy-editing,andtothemembersoftheASECSExecutive Boardfortheirongoingsupport.Bonnecontinuation. JulieCandlerHayes UniversityofRichmond ...