Research

Theodor Swann’s Unpublished Work: Studies on the Relationship between Biology, Religion and Politics in the 19^th Century

Project Manager: Dr. Florence Vienne

Hardly any 19^th century natural scientist is so well-known and also so unknown as Theodor Schwann (1810-1882). Textbooks and history books remind us of his discovery of cells as the basic unit of plants and animals. Alongside Darwin’s theory of evolution, cell theory is one of the foundations of the biological sciences. However, while the many and diverse facets of Darwin the natural scientist have long since been researched on the basis of his Nachlass manuscripts, Schwann’s life and work remains largely unexplored. His extensive unpublished work has hitherto remained largely unknown. This includes experimental and scientific records, personal diaries as well as drafts and the manuscripts of his lectures. He kept a diary as a young assistant to the physiologist Johannes Müller (1801-1858) in Berlin in the 1830s and as a university lecturer in Leuven and Liège from 1839 up to the 1870s. His records document his work on the genesis of his 1838 cell theory but also its later further developments. They provide insights into the metaphysical and theological questions that shaped his worldview and scientific outlook from his youth up to his death. Like the botanist Jakob Matthias Schleiden (1804-1881) and the zoologist Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919), Schwann left behind a body of work that is an expression of a profound scientific and cultural transformation. Using the example of the three biologists, we can explore the reciprocal relations between the emergence of a cellular cell-based understanding of the living organism and the religious and political upheavals of the 19^th century.

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The botanist and cell theorist Matthias J. Schleiden (1804-1881) lived and worked in Jena between 1839 and 1862. Here he met the philosopher Jakob Friedrich Fries (17763-1843), an important figure for him, and wrote his main work Grundzüge der wissenschaftlichen Botanik [Basic Features of Scientific Botany] (1842/43) as well as polemics against Naturphilosophie and materialism. He lectured on botany and anthropology at the university and gave popular scientific talks. From1850 to 1862 he was director of the botanical garden. In addition to his scientific activity, he was politically active in the revolutionary year 1848. In this history of science workshop, students and scholars explore the different facets of Schleiden’s life and work in Jena. The findings will be incorporated into a publication that uses the example of Schleiden to shed new light onthe relationships between natural science, philosophy and politics in the 19^th century. The goal is to present the book publication to a larger audience at the Ernst-Haeckel-Haus.

Contact: Dr. Florence Vienne

Management: Christina Brandt

Editing: Anna Klassen

DFG-Projekt, Teilprojekt 7 in der Forschungsgruppe "Kooperation und Konkurrenz in den Wissenschaften"

Kooperation und Konkurrenz in den Wissenschaften, Teilprojekt 7External link