Do English Studies Understand Natural Science? Considering the Modern Scholarship of English Romanticism

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24652061
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Literature in English
• Research Institution: University of Hyogo
• Principal Investigator: ISHIKURA Waka 兵庫県立大学, 環境人間学部, 教授 (10290644)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): NAKANE Michiyo 日本大学, 理工学部, 研究員 (30212088)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: ロマン主義 / 英文学研究 / 科学史 / 歴史主義

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Scientific interest has been variously expressed in English literary works from the 17th century. However, it has not fully been contextualized and historicized for its proper understanding in the English studies established in the 20th century. This study focuses on this issue, pointing out that ahistorical approaches to literary texts are prototypical in the systematization of English studies, and that those texts, therefore, have been less likely to be historicized in view of the scientific system of natural knowledge that has been developed to date. Then, the understanding of literary texts in this modern age can be considered as allegedly independent or sadly alienated from the scientific knowledge in its proper state.

Free Research Field

イギリス文学