Ana Rodrigues

Keynote Title: Du Châtelet’s Pseudo-Translation of Mandeville’s Fable of the Bees

Abstract: Émilie Du Châtelet is a significant Enlightenment philosopher whose recognition and reception as a natural philosopher have made great strides in recent decades. However, the same cannot be said for her contributions to moral philosophy. This phenomenon can be attributed to a number of factors. A clear distinction emerges between Du Châtelet’s works on morals and those on natural philosophy. While the latter, such as the Dissertation sur la nature et la propagation du feu and the Institutions de physique, were published during her lifetime and contributed to the official scientific discourse, her works on moral philosophy circulated primarily as manuscripts. Consequently, these texts belonged to a clandestine current within the Enlightenment debate, significantly hindering their reception. Du Châtelet’s translation of Mandeville’s Fable of the Bees poses additional challenges for interpreters by virtue of its inherent textual complexities. In this lecture, the text will be introduced and contextualised with reference to its distinctiveness and its significance as the foundation of Du Châtelet’s moral philosophy.

CV: Ana Rodrigues, M.A., is a lecturer in the Teaching Area of Heterogeneity at the Chair of Practical Philosophy at Paderborn University. She hold a degree in Romance languages, English, and philosophy, having studied at the Universities of Paderborn and Toulouse. Her academic career began in 2008 in the teaching and research unit History of Women Philosophers and Scientists under the direction of Prof. Dr. Ruth Hagengruber, which later evolved into the Centre for the History of Women Philosophers and Scientists in 2016. From 2011 to 2020, she was the executive research assistant for the diversity project In der Philosophie zu Hause. In 2020, this project was formally institutionalized as the Teaching Area of Heterogeneity. Her research centers on the moral philosophy of Émilie Du Châtelet, exploring her contributions to Enlightenment thought.