1. Apr 2025
New Research Training Group “Politik der Aufklärung” has started
What do politicians mean when they refer to the ideals of the Enlightenment? Angela Merkel declared in the Bundestag in 2021 that she believes in the “power of the Enlightenment”. French President Emmanuel Macron repeatedly invokes the need to defend the “spirit of the Enlightenment”. “Critical research must of course question what interpretation of the concept of enlightenment underlies these political statements,” says Décultot. A look at the past shows that this interpretation changes and is often guided by interests. Critical voices even see the philosophy of the Enlightenment as a product of Eurocentrism, which has fostered the colonialism and racism of the West.
The new Research Training Group “Politics of the Enlightenment”, which is funded by the DFG with five million euros in the first phase, is also dedicated to such questions. The research training group brings together 18 doctoral projects dealing with the history of the Enlightenment and its relationship to politics. Research is broadly based and covers literary studies, German studies, comparative studies, English studies, political science, philosophy and history. MLU and the IZEA offer an excellent environment for this demanding program.
(from Campus Halensis, 01.04.2025)
About GRK 2999
Research Training Group “Politik der Aufklärung (GRK 2999)” spokesperson: Prof. Dr. Elisabeth Décultot, coordinator: NN (funding 2025-2030) (link)
