An Intellectual Journey from Transylvania to Berlin during the Enlightenment: the Case of József Fogarasi Pap

Maria Iulia Florutau (UCL SSEES)

The presentation will investigate forms of intellectual development in the Late Enlightenment through the example of a Transylvanian philosopher and educator, József Fogarasi Pap (1744-1784).

He evolved from a prodigious student at the Reformed (Calvinist) College in Orastie to the first appointed Protestant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Pest via an intellectual journey that took him to Switzerland, Germany, and the Netherlands. He collaborated with various European academic societies and successfully submitted many essays to different prize contests. 

The presentation first considers the beginning of his philosophical career, his Baccalaureate dissertation in Transylvania, on the topic of the revival of Socrates in Christian theology. It then considers his last prize-winning essay, submitted to the Prussian Academy of Sciences, on the topic of the force of matter. It will, therefore, trace this intellectual journey by analysing the philosophical content and the context in which the two essays are written and consider whether his evolution presents geographical and temporal differences. 

A seminar hosted by the UCL SSEES Arts and Humanities Research Student  Seminars

Student Co-ordinator: George Bodie