Part 18 (1/2)
With the fall of Rome fell also the schools, and all the higher inst.i.tutions for the diffusion of knowledge; but with the spread of Christianity they began again to rear their heads, but with a very essentially different character. Their tendency was preeminently theological,--as the theological seminaries, and the catechetical schools, especially at Alexandria, testify; which latter maintained the highest celebrity, from the second to the fourteenth century. This theological tendency manifested itself still more in the episcopal and cathedral schools, where indeed the so-called Seven Free Arts were also taught, but in the most miserable and imperfect manner. Theology, growing every day more sterile, yet exercised a perpetually increasing lords.h.i.+p over philosophy, and formally subjected it to tutelage, as the monastic schools from the sixth to the eleventh century most strikingly show. These inst.i.tutions sought the immediate protection of the hierarchy, and the result of their labours was the School Philosophy.
Charlemagne and his friend Alcuin again first comprehended the idea of a general humane accomplishment. The former founded the Schola Palatii, for princes and young men of condition, and Alfred in England established similar ones there; but with the death of these remarkable men, all seemed to fall back again into the old track. These cloister schools, however, in the ninth century, merged into the so-called Faculty Schools; which again in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries lived anew as Universities. Thus, in consequence of the schools of Charlemagne and Alfred, a free spirit of scientific inquiry evolved itself from the cloister schools, which found a corroborating co-operation in the Rabbinical schools of North Africa, in Spain, and France, and still more, in the schools of the Arabs. There, such Faculty Schools stood forth with especial prominence; the one for medical science at Salerno; for jurisprudence at Bologna, which possessed distinguished privileges as the gift of the Emperor Henry I.
through the _Autentica_ of the year 1158. The scholastic theology soon separated itself from the Aristotelian-Arabic Philosophy, and the seat of the latter became Paris. Amongst many precious privileges, which these three inst.i.tutions received in consequence of the _Autentica_ of Frederick I., that of Philip Augustus for Paris was the most remarkable. It freed it from the civil jurisdiction, and placed it under the jurisdiction of its own teachers. Paris was also the first university in which all branches of education were taught; yet even there, still theology continued to be the prominent study, and none of the universities could confer all kinds of academical honours. So, doctors of theology could only be created in Paris; of law, only in Bologna, and so on. As these schools now became actually universities, they ceased to bear the names of scholae, studia, studia generalia, and the name of universities was adopted, and has ever since continued in use.
The teachers of the universities received originally no stipend from the state. Frederick II. paid to the teachers of the newly-founded university at Naples in 1224, the first fixed stipend. The great advantages of a university education becoming, by degrees, generally known, occasioned many cities, which saw these advantages, to endeavour to become university-cities themselves, so that from the thirteenth century the number greatly increased. Universities were founded in Montpellier in 1220; in Orleans in 1312; and in Prague in 1348; the last in particular formed on the model of that of Paris. Independence of the state created, especially in Prague, a most beneficial freedom of doctrine in the teachers, which was often directed against the prince, and often against the church, with the most distinguished consequences.
We are once more conducted by the mention of Prague back to the universities of Germany, and it must be, in the first place, observed, that this university for a considerable period was, and continued to be, the only one. But as knowledge penetrated more and more into Germany, and especially as it was cherished and promoted by the princes, the want of such higher educational inst.i.tutions was more and more felt, and thus arose in the German territory, previous to the end of the fifteenth century, fifteen universities,--of which Vienna was founded in 1365; Heidelberg in 1387; Cologne in 1388; Erfurt in 1392; Leipsic in 1409; Rostock in 1419; Freisburg in Breisgau in 1452; Greifswalde in 1456, 1472; Trier in 1454, 1472; Basle in 1460; Ingoldstadt in 1471; Tubingen in 1477; Mayence in 1471. At the beginning of the sixteenth century arose Wittenberg in 1502, and Frankfurt on the Oder in 1505; Marburg in 1527, the first Protestant university; Konigsberg in Prussia in 1544; Jena in 1554, 1557; Altdorf in 1675, 1678; Helmstadt 1575.
At that period, however, the Protestant princes only could be justly praised for their care to provide able professors; the universities which continued Catholic, or which were newly-founded by Catholic princes, as those of Dillingen in 1613; Paderborn in 1615; and Molsheim in 1618; were occupied by the Jesuits. In consequence of the unfortunate Thirty Years' War, many of these universities fell; many suffered much from the chances of war; and these circ.u.mstances incited neighbouring princes to found new universities. So arose the university at Giessen in 1650; at Duisburg in 1655; at Kiel in 1665. The Elector Frederick III. of Brandenburg--King Frederick I.--changed in 1694 the Ritter School at Halle into a university. A general improvement of the instruction given in all the universities in this century is observable: but spite of all endeavours at improvement in this respect, the sciences all continued to be taught in a very unphilosophical manner, and in the Latin tongue.
The necessary advance from this wretched state of things began with the eighteenth century, through the universally restless activity of the philosopher Leibnitz. Christian Wolf taught first in the spirit of Leibnitz and in the German tongue. George II. seconding the better spirit of the time, founded a new university at Gottingen in 1734; Margrave Frederick of Brandenburg-Ans.p.a.ch one at Erlangen in 1743; and a Catholic one arose through the Prince-Bishop of Dalberg in 1734 at Fulda, but was dissolved again in 1804. The good spirit continued to work on through the remaining half of the eighteenth century, and thus in 1760, Duke Frederick of Mecklenburg founded a university at Butzow, which was in 1789 united to that of Rostock. The Duke Karl Eugen of Wurtemberg in 1770 founded that of Stuttgardt, which was, however, again dissolved in 1794. Bonn also at that period received the foundation of its university. More recently was founded that at Landshut, whither the university of Ingoldstadt was removed in 1800, and again in 1827 removed to Munich. Wittemberg ceased in 1816, being united to that of Halle; and in 1810 a new university was founded at Berlin.
We have now, gentlemen, taken an historical glance at the German universities, and at their foundations, so far as is necessary. They were called forth by the ruling circ.u.mstances of the times, and established themselves now in this manner and now in that. But it is especially interesting to us to have seen that the university of Heidelberg was one of the earliest, and continues one of the first; its rank no one will presume to contest. She has raised her n.o.ble head amid all the storms of time, and no state revolutions or other political epochs could make her bend. Ruperto-Carolo shone like a morning sun on the horizon of scientific endeavour, and we now shall take with particular pleasure the opportunity----
”To invite the honourable listeners politely to partake of a modest supper;” interrupted Hoffmann. ”Thou mayst finish thy learned lecture another time.”
Von Kronen.--Far be it from me to throw any obstruction in the way of so praiseworthy a proposition; especially, as the favourite adage of our city of the Muses has always been--the utile dulci.
Mr. Traveller.--So postpone we then the continuance of the discourse to a future day.
PHRENOLOGY.
The little collation was in the mean time brought up, and the company, under the conduct of the musical artist, made the most successful attacks on the ham and veal cutlet. The Gottingen sausage, moreover, an imitation of the renowned Sulzer, was as little spared as the potato-salad, and the scattered remains soon alone marked the battle-field. A n.o.ble Rhine-wine recruited the muscles of the jaw, and loosed again the tongue of the brave combatants. The affairs of the day became the subject of discourse, and occurrences in Hanover, which then appeared likely vitally to affect the interests of all Germany, were eagerly discussed by all. Mr. Traveller, as the representative of England, stated the strong feeling which there prevailed against the King of Hanover, and so they came to talk of the prevailing views and theories in England, on many subjects, and Mr. Traveller speedily entangled himself in a discussion on Phrenology, which he endeavoured to defend. Freisleben, a determined opponent to the theory, immediately took up the subject zealously.
Freisleben.--They are now signs on the skull that man will expound, formerly they were signs in the heaven. What unpardonable presumption, from certain deviations from the regularity of the outer form, to infer an a.n.a.logical change of the soul. A leap which, according to my opinion, is not less than from comets' tails to war. What presumption, from the body to seek to form conclusions upon the spirit, whose mode of connexion with it is to us totally unknown! It strikes me exactly as if any one should infer or a.s.sert the possession of a fine sense of smell, from the existence of a huge nose, or, as dancing is a function of the foot, that he who has a great foot must be a capital dancer.
Mr. Traveller.--Throw the matter into ridicule as much as you please, but take along with you at the same time the evidences which experience furnishes.
Freisleben.--These evidences have long been shown to evidence nothing, and it astonishes me that this doctrine of Gall and Spurzheim, this ephemeral structure, can find so much acceptance in England.
Mr. Traveller.--I know the thing only by popular representations. But the principles which are herein derived from anatomy and physiology, to which Gall and Spurzheim have rendered much service, the grounds which pathology and comparative anatomy also furnish, appear to me worthy of all attention.
Pittschaft.--That n.o.body denies; but Gall having rendered essential service to the anatomy of the brain, by no means justifies his doctrine.
Freisleben.--His theory must fall, when it is a.s.sailed _a priori_, or by experience. Above all things, unphilosophical, not to say ridiculous, is his distribution into twenty-seven senses. By what right has he only so many set forth; and why is a boundary drawn here?
Mr. Traveller.--Though many things may be said against this distribution, yet it is often seen in life that an individual sense as marked out by Gall, is pre-eminently developed and frequently almost exclusively predominates; I remind you of his five-sorts-of-memory sense.
Freisleben.--Certainly. But what is the cause of this? Is it not to be sought rather in external influences, which especially develope this kind of memory? And if we leave this out of view, then must we go still farther. So there is a painter who can paint only landscapes; and I recollect in Matthisson's Reminiscences, to have read of a Cretin in Berne, who could paint cats, and cats only, but them most excellently.
How much farther must Gall's artistical faculty be subdivided, till it reaches down to the cat-painting faculty!
Mr. Traveller.--The artistical faculty is probably in this painter, but we must a.s.sume that it is prevented from unfolding itself in all directions.
Freisleben.--But there you knock yourself down. Since, if we a.s.sume that there is no necessity for the faculty, which the external elevation of the skull indicates, to develope itself, then the whole pile of Phrenology tumbles to the ground. But does it develope itself, and is this acknowledged as necessary, what incalculable and horrible consequences must this have! All moral responsibility ceases: the criminal escapes punishment, since he can show on his skull the irresistible murder-sense. But I will not pursue this farther, since, happily, we have nothing to fear from it. Scarcely in a single instance do the outer plates of the skull-bones correspond permanently with the inner ones, and therefore not with the brain. I call to your recollection only the skulls of certain animals, in which, between the two skull-plates, is to be found a large hollow, as we, indeed, also find in man; as, for instance, the hollow of the forehead--the frontal sinus--which is, in different individuals, very differently developed.
Then again the most recent physiological experiments show, that in occurring injuries, they are not by any means of so much consequence in the external portion of the brain, in the hemisphere, but that it is exactly the inner portion which is of the most importance, and which also has a much more determinate shape. In injuries of the head too, cases have occurred, where whole spoonsful of the hemisphere of the brain have been taken out without the slightest diminution of the actively intellectual powers. Object not to me that the convolutions of the hemisphere of the brain have been particularly developed in distinguished men--here it was also the case with the inner portion: one part does not develope itself without the other. Object not that the anatomy of beasts gives no secure result, since if this is the case, how can phrenology itself dare to hope to give more certain judgments? The firm and immovable part--the form of the bones especially--is delusive: in the first place, since they have long acquired their form and consistency before every species of improvement of the improvable creature takes place, which comes long after the complete fixidity; and secondly, since this form depends so little upon our will, while the influence of external causes is so unavoidable, and a single pressure or stroke can gradually work a change, whose progress no art is capable of restraining. Moreover, even could any thing be deduced from this, still the firm parts yet const.i.tute but a certain and perpetually fixed proportion, a single and insignificant link in the chain of countless circ.u.mstances, which go to the formation of the human character.
Mr. Traveller.--My G.o.d! my head is in a whirligig with all this--with all this rapid German.