Nigel Ritchie
'The making of a revolutionary journalist: Jean-Paul Marat (1770-1790)'.
This thesis provides the first comprehensive account of the intellectual and political formation of Jean-Paul Marat (1743–1793) as a revolutionary journalist, drawing from his extensive pre-revolutionary career to provide a framework for understanding the impact of his first year as a pamphleteer and editor of the 'Ami du peuple'. While the French Revolution has captivated imaginations for the past two centuries, the same cannot be said of Marat who has traditionally been seen as the epitome of excess. I argue instead for a re-evaluation of a neglected Enlightenment figure whose motives, intentions and intellect have often been devalued, and whose significance during the Revolution’s first year has been generally underestimated.
Drawing upon an extensive range of sources, including new archive material, I demonstrate that a detailed knowledge of the variety of Marat’s pre-revolutionary careers, and influences, in particular, his religious, medical and scientific backgrounds, and close connection with the theoretical and practical traditions of British extra-parliamentary politics, is vital for a proper understanding of his revolutionary strategies. I argue for interpreting Marat’s intellectual production between 1770 and 1790 as a coherent body of work that should be assessed within the context of its production rather than through the distorting lens of his later notoriety, and reveal that his political radicalism was evident long before any setbacks to his scientific career. Finally, I show how many of the roots of the 'légende noire' that has bedeviled critical assessment of Marat can be traced back to the early months of his revolutionary involvement, and a smear campaign calculated to neutralize his credibility as an uncompromising critic of the new regime. In this regard, it seeks to move past the reductionist, psychological interpretation of Marat’s behaviour, which has hitherto predominated in the scholarship.
Supervisors: Colin Jones and Mark Curran
Address: London, Hackney
This thesis provides the first comprehensive account of the intellectual and political formation of Jean-Paul Marat (1743–1793) as a revolutionary journalist, drawing from his extensive pre-revolutionary career to provide a framework for understanding the impact of his first year as a pamphleteer and editor of the 'Ami du peuple'. While the French Revolution has captivated imaginations for the past two centuries, the same cannot be said of Marat who has traditionally been seen as the epitome of excess. I argue instead for a re-evaluation of a neglected Enlightenment figure whose motives, intentions and intellect have often been devalued, and whose significance during the Revolution’s first year has been generally underestimated.
Drawing upon an extensive range of sources, including new archive material, I demonstrate that a detailed knowledge of the variety of Marat’s pre-revolutionary careers, and influences, in particular, his religious, medical and scientific backgrounds, and close connection with the theoretical and practical traditions of British extra-parliamentary politics, is vital for a proper understanding of his revolutionary strategies. I argue for interpreting Marat’s intellectual production between 1770 and 1790 as a coherent body of work that should be assessed within the context of its production rather than through the distorting lens of his later notoriety, and reveal that his political radicalism was evident long before any setbacks to his scientific career. Finally, I show how many of the roots of the 'légende noire' that has bedeviled critical assessment of Marat can be traced back to the early months of his revolutionary involvement, and a smear campaign calculated to neutralize his credibility as an uncompromising critic of the new regime. In this regard, it seeks to move past the reductionist, psychological interpretation of Marat’s behaviour, which has hitherto predominated in the scholarship.
Supervisors: Colin Jones and Mark Curran
Address: London, Hackney
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Thesis Chapters by Nigel Ritchie
Drawing upon an extensive range of sources, including new archive material, I demonstrate that a detailed knowledge of the variety of Marat’s pre-revolutionary careers and influences, in particular, his religious, medical and scientific backgrounds, and close connection with the theoretical and practical traditions of English extra-parliamentary politics, is vital for a proper understanding of his revolutionary strategies. I argue for interpreting Marat’s intellectual output between 1770 and 1790 as a coherent body of work that should be assessed within the context of its production rather than through the distorting lens of his later notoriety, and reveal that his political radicalism was evident long before any setbacks to his scientific career. Finally, I show how many of the roots of the légende noire that has bedevilled critical assessment of Marat can be traced back to the early months of his revolutionary involvement, and a smear campaign calculated to neutralize his credibility as an uncompromising critic of the new regime. In this regard, it seeks to move past the reductionist, psychological interpretation of Marat’s behaviour that has tended to predominate in the scholarship.
Book Reviews by Nigel Ritchie
Books by Nigel Ritchie
Conference Presentations by Nigel Ritchie
Papers by Nigel Ritchie
Drawing upon an extensive range of sources, including new archive material, I demonstrate that a detailed knowledge of the variety of Marat’s pre-revolutionary careers and influences, in particular, his religious, medical and scientific backgrounds, and close connection with the theoretical and practical traditions of English extra-parliamentary politics, is vital for a proper understanding of his revolutionary strategies. I argue for interpreting Marat’s intellectual output between 1770 and 1790 as a coherent body of work that should be assessed within the context of its production rather than through the distorting lens of his later notoriety, and reveal that his political radicalism was evident long before any setbacks to his scientific career. Finally, I show how many of the roots of the légende noire that has bedevilled critical assessment of Marat can be traced back to the early months of his revolutionary involvement, and a smear campaign calculated to neutralize his credibility as an uncompromising critic of the new regime. In this regard, it seeks to move past the reductionist, psychological interpretation of Marat’s behaviour that has tended to predominate in the scholarship.
Nigel Ritchie
French History 2015;
doi: 10.1093/fh/crv013
Abstract for forthcoming article in special issue of French History (2015), based around the conference: “Writers and the Press in France: Pamphlets, Propaganda, and Politics”, hosted by Bristol University in 2013.
Building upon an idea first hinted at by Elizabeth Eisenstein over twenty years ago, this article will argue that Jean-Paul Marat’s prior English experience of a ‘new politics’ based on printed media may provide a valuable key to understanding the evolution of his journalistic strategy during the Revolution. Drawing original parallels with Junius, the audacious polemicist, and John Wilkes, the authority-baiting politician-journalist, who were both active during Marat’s residency, it will show how he channeled their critical legacies into his own singular persona as public writer and ‘People’s friend’. It will also argue that Marat’s self-identification with his 'L’Ami du peuple' newspaper finds a strong parallel in Wilkes’ own tactical self-identification with ‘English liberty’ and ‘the middling sorts’. The examination of these influences provides an opportunity to open up an aspect of Marat’s revolutionary formation that has hitherto barely been explored, and provides much-needed context for a better understanding of his political writing.