Rational Dissent in England c. 1770 - c. 1800: Definitions, Identity and Legacy

摘要

The importance of late eighteenth century Rational Dissent has been rightlyudrecognised by many contemporaries and subsequent historians. Yet the character ofudRational Dissent has been less than fully understood, partly because of the overconcentrationudon Richard Price and Joseph Priestley, and on the politics, rather than theudall-important theological ideas which underpinned the political ideas of RationaludDissenters.udThis dissertation adopts a new and prosopographical method of analysis. TheudBiographical Register of authors of published and unpublished material, and ofudprominent local figures demonstrates the highly varied range of the individuals,udcongregations and other groups amongst its adherents and reveals valuable insights intoudthe wide areas of opinions within Rational Dissent, and key periods and forms ofudactivity.udThis research, through its prosopographical approach, covers new ground inuddemonstrating that significant differences between Rational and Orthodox Dissentingudtheology led to the emergence of a Rational Dissenting identity which became sharplyudand increasingly divergent from that of Orthodox Dissenters. Through extensiveudanalysis of the identity of Rational Dissent as a whole, it demonstrates considerablyudgreater nuances in belief than have previously been recognised. It establishes that it wasudthe specific theological ideas of Rational Dissenters which underpinned and drove theirudpolitical concepts and notions as to the nature of society.udBased on investigation of 19 lists of subscribers to Rational Dissentingudpublished works and organisations, this study identifies a core of 444 multipleudsubscribers, the overwhelming majority committed adherents of Rational Dissent.udThese are substantial lists totalling 6,047 subscriptions. The 444 individuals as a groupudprovide an essential basis for analysis of the social, geographical and intellectual appealudof Rational Dissent amongst its less visible adherents, notably women, laymen andudministers who sustained it at local level. Analysis of previously largely over-lookedudUnitarian Library records allows identification of the social and intellectual span ofudtheir readers and their particular areas of theological interest. This range of sourcesudenables statistical analysis of the identity and appeal of the broad base of RationaludDissent in the late eighteenth century.udThis dissertation argues that Rational Dissent in England between c. 1770 and c.ud1800, characterised by its own distinctive doctrinal identity, merits furtherudinvestigation, and constitutes a primary motivation for this study. From this researchudemerges a fuller understanding of the place of Rational Dissent within society, itsudcomplex and evolving nature, and finally analysis of the legacy of Rational Dissent inudthe early nineteenth century.