Literary Empfindsamkeit and nervous sensibility in eighteenth-century Germany

The article belongs with recent research on eighteenth-century German 'anthropology' (the study of mind-body relations). It addresses the links between emotional and nervous sensibility in late eighteenth-century German fiction. It establishes the connection between neurophysiology and fiction in Empfindsamkeit with reference to theoretical writings of the period, then discusses the convergence of 'physical' and 'moral' Empfindsamkeit in late eighteenth-century German fiction, paying special attention to the force and vigour granted to emotional activity by neurophysiological theories. Finally, Jean Paul is placed in this context, with emphasis on the way the neurophysiology behind his sensibility informs his conception of the morality of emotional experiencing.