Universitat de les Illes Balears, Palma, Illes Balears, 07122, Spain.
Hist Philos Life Sci. 2024 Mar 13;46(1):15. doi: 10.1007/s40656-024-00615-9.
This article analyses the evolutionist discourses on the senses that emerged in the late 19th century, when theories on the evolution of species were in full sway. Drawing on newspapers, essays and medical literature, this article aims to set face to face the two currents of thought that I have identified regarding sensory evolution: the one that stressed the value of the progressive specialisation of the senses as evidence for human evolution mainly supported by Max Nordau, and the one which regarded the sensory regrouping, exemplified by the phenomenon of synaesthesia, as the true symptom of evolution, strongly supported by Victor Segalen. A close examination of their arguments will provide clues concerning their relative position vis-à-vis the theory that stressed the exceptional nature of humankind among all living beings. Based on newspapers, essays and medical literature, this paper, which straddles several fields (history of science, philosophy, cultural history and aesthetics) aims to set both positions face to face, examining their arguments in detail and establishing their genealogies. This will lead to a better understanding of the scope and range of evolutionist discourses in the fin de siècle culture and on their impact upon artistic practices.
本文分析了 19 世纪末在物种进化理论盛行时出现的关于感官的进化论述。本文通过对报纸、散文和医学文献的分析，旨在将我所确定的两种关于感官进化的思潮进行对比：一种思潮强调感官的渐进专门化的价值，认为这是人类进化的主要证据，主要由马克斯·诺尔道（Max Nordau）支持；另一种思潮则认为感官的重新组合，例如联觉现象，是进化的真正症状，这一观点主要由维克多·塞尔丹（Victor Segalen）支持。仔细研究他们的论点，可以提供有关他们相对于强调人类在所有生物中具有特殊性的理论的相对位置的线索。本文基于报纸、散文和医学文献，跨越了几个领域（科学史、哲学、文化史和美学），旨在将这两种立场进行对比，详细审查它们的论点，并确定它们的谱系。这将有助于更好地理解 19 世纪末文化中进化主义论述的范围和范围，并了解它们对艺术实践的影响。
