Curated playlist
Age of Enlightenment
- Age of EnlightenmentIn 1784, Immanuel Kant answered the question of what enlightenment is with two words: dare to know.
- Ludwig van BeethovenBeethoven was deaf when a singer turned him around to see applause. It happened at the premiere on the 7th of May 1824.
- Immanuel KantA Prussian king's censors forbade Immanuel Kant to speak publicly about religion. The philosopher answered in 1798.
- Jean-Jacques RousseauRousseau refused a king's pension after Louis XV loved his opera. Friends were exasperated by his choice.
- René DescartesRené Descartes had three dreams in a heated room in 1619. He believed they revealed a new philosophy to him.
- Baroque musicThe word baroque began as an insult aimed at a French opera. A critic called Rameau's 1733 music "du barocque."
- Corsican RepublicAlexander Hamilton and his King's College classmates called their militia group "The Corsicans".
- Joseph HaydnJoseph Haydn's skull was stolen after his burial and not reunited with his body until 1954.
- 1775–1795 in Western fashionA white muslin dress worn by Marie Antoinette caused a national scandal. Critics said it looked like underwear.
- Francis BaconFrancis Bacon may have died after stuffing a hen with snow. He wanted to test if cold could preserve meat like salt.
- Enlightened absolutismEmperor Joseph II summed up his rule in nine words: "Everything for the people, nothing by the people."
- Republic of LettersThe Republic of Letters had no government, yet it worked like a republic.
- Founding Fathers of the United StatesSixteen delegates to the 1787 Constitutional Convention never signed the Constitution.
- Religious fanaticismIn Christian antiquity, fanaticism was a label used to discredit non-Christian religions.
- PolymathOne study found Nobel-winning scientists were 25 times likelier to sing, dance, or act than average ones.