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The "Orangutan" of the Enlightenment - Festival Histoire et Cité
Conference by Silvia Sebastiani
Conference by Silvia Sebastiani
The "orangutan," or "man of the woods," arrived in 17th-century Europe through the first treatises on medical casuistry, among other clinical cases. Its proximity to human beings cast doubt on the boundary between humanity and animality, a central feature of Enlightenment controversies. The quest for this phenomenon led to the triangular trade routes that supplied the metropolises with specimens, raising the question of the "degrees" of humanity.
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