Eighteenth-century British dictionaries of arts and sciences, as an emerging genre which draws its features from lexicographic works arranged in alphabetical order and the tradition of commonplace books (Yeo 2001: 102-103) among others, aim to disseminate and make knowledge/s available to a large and curious educated readership. Their general aim was to represent modernity -- as their present or recent past -- as it was perceived at the time, and make it known to the people. However, modernity and progress were not presented to the public in a vacuum, even though they were the focus of these reference works. Ancient times and, in particular, antiquity -- as history, habits, cultural issues, heritage, etc. -- were also included as the foundation of contemporary society, for many different aspects. In this perspective, the aim of this study is to investigate the notion and the representation of the distant past as it emerges from those words and contents labelled as antiquity.
“I come like an Heir to a large Patrimony”: the representation of antiquity in 18th-c. British dictionaries of arts and sciences
Elisabetta Lonati
2023-01-01
Abstract
Eighteenth-century British dictionaries of arts and sciences, as an emerging genre which draws its features from lexicographic works arranged in alphabetical order and the tradition of commonplace books (Yeo 2001: 102-103) among others, aim to disseminate and make knowledge/s available to a large and curious educated readership. Their general aim was to represent modernity -- as their present or recent past -- as it was perceived at the time, and make it known to the people. However, modernity and progress were not presented to the public in a vacuum, even though they were the focus of these reference works. Ancient times and, in particular, antiquity -- as history, habits, cultural issues, heritage, etc. -- were also included as the foundation of contemporary society, for many different aspects. In this perspective, the aim of this study is to investigate the notion and the representation of the distant past as it emerges from those words and contents labelled as antiquity.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
