Document Type
Thesis
Date of Degree Completion
Spring 2019
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
History
Committee Chair
Jason Knirck
Second Committee Member
Roxanne Easley
Third Committee Member
Daniel Herman
Abstract
Eighteenth-century Scotland is marked by the impact of new ideas from the Scottish Enlightenment that influenced agricultural revolution. Practices that had been used for over hundreds of years with little change, went through a dramatic agricultural reimagining during this time period. Scottish Enlightenment “improvers,” like Henry Home, Lord Kames, demonstrate this push towards “progress.” In particular, Lord Kames represents a conundrum. He, like many other Scots, believed in the authenticity of Ossian’s translated poems by James Macpherson. This patriotic devotion to Scottish culture influenced the way that Kames went about “improving” his own lands and who he chose to work on them. There were parts of Scottish culture that were depicted in these poems regarding Gaelic culture that Kames wanted to preserve. Even though Kames, like many Scots of his time, wanted change, they also wanted to preserve traditional Scottish culture portrayed in Ossian’s poems.
Recommended Citation
Widney, Amanda M., "Enlightened Agricultural Improvement in Eighteenth-Century Scotland" (2019). All Master's Theses. 1222.
https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/1222
Language
English