14�

l '11C Structu I-al 'I'rall Sf()r Il1ati()ll of thc I>ul)Llc Spllcrc

\ \Tilllcim c()nfcsscs t() Ills brotllcr -in -la,\' tIle need " to bcc()mc

a public PCI'S()n an(1 to please and influence in a larger cil 'clc ."Yet Sill C C lIe is n() n()bicman and as a b()u rgc ()is also does not,,'ant t() make tIle \ 'ain cff ()rt merely t() appear t() be ()ne , lIeseeks ()ut tIle stage as a substitute , so to speak , f()r publicity .HCI'C lies tIle secret ()fIlis theatrical mission : "On tIle boards a

p()lisllcd man appeal 's in Ills splendor ,vitll personal accom -plisllmcnts , just as he docs so in tIle upper classes of society ."It may ,,'ell be tllat it ' \'as tIle S C C I' Ct C(lui \'ocation ()f the "cul -tu I'cd pcrs ()nality " (" tIIC necessity I feel t() culti \'atc my mentalfaculties and tastes" ), the bourgeois intention in tIle figurepr ()jcctcd as a nobleman , tllat permit ted tIle equation ()f theatrical

pCrf ()I' lnancc \vitll public l'cprcscntation . But in turn thepc I'ccption of the disintcgl 'ation of tIle rcprcsentati \'c publicness

in b()uI'gc()is s()cicty ' \'as S() much on tIle mark and the

inclination to bcl ()Lig t() it nc \'crtllclcss so strong that tllcrcmust bc mO I' C t() the matter than a simple equivocation . \ Vil -Ilclm came bcfol ' C Ills public as Hamlet , success fully at first .rI'hc pul )Llc, IIO" 'C\'CI', ,,'as all 'cady tIle carrier of a differentpublic Spll C I' C, OllC tllat no longer 11ad any tIling in common,,'itll that ()f rcprcscntati ()n . In tilis sense \ Vilhclm 1\lcister 'stllcatrical mission 11acl t() fail . It ' \'as out of step , as it ,vcre , ,vitllthe b()urgc ()is pul )Llc Sph C I' C ,vhosc platf ()rm the theatre hadmcan ,\'llilc bcc()Inc . Bcaumarcllais 's };' igaro had alreadyen -tered the stage and along ,\'itll him , acc()rding to Napoleon 'sfamous ,\'()rcls, tIle rc \ '()lution .

3 On the Genesis of the Bourgeois Public Sphere

\ Vitll tIle emergence of early finance and trade capitalism , theelements of a ne\v social order \vere taking shape . I..' rom thetllirtcenth century on tiley spread from the northern Italiancity -states to \vestern and northern Europe and caused the risefirst of Dutcll centers for staple goods (Bruges , Liittich , Brussels

, Ghent , etc .) and tilen of the great trade fairs at the crossroads of long -distance trade . Initially , to be sure , they \vere

integrated \\'itllout much trouble by the old po \ver structure .rI'hat initial assimilation of bourgeois humanism to a noblecourtly culture , as \ve observe it paradigmatically during the

15

Preliminary Demarcation of a 'rype of Bourgeois Public Spllere

rise of I"lorcntine I{ cnaissance s()ciety , must also be seen against

tl1is backgr ()und . l~arly capitalism \\.as conscr \ 'ativc n ()t only asregards tl1C ccon ()mic mentality so \ 'ividly described by S()mbart(a charactc I' istic \ \'ay of doing business typified by " ll ()n ()rable "

gain ~7) but als () as regards politics . As lol1g as it lived fr ()ll1 tIlefi 'uits of tl1e ()ld mode of product i()n (tl1c feudal organizatiol1

of agricultural p I'oducti ()n i il\ 'ol \ 'i I1g ali cl1serfed peasal1try and

tl1C petty c()mmodity p I' ()ductio il of tl1c corporati \ 'cl )' ()rganizeduI ,ban c I'aftsmen ) ,\'ith ()ut tra il Sf()rming it ,~H it retained ambi -\ 'alent c I1al'actel ' istics . 011 tl1e one 11and tilis capitalism stabilized

tl1C P()' \'CI' structu I' C ()f a society organized in estates , and ()ntl1e ()tiler 11and it ul1lcasl1cd tl1c \ 'el 'y clements \\'ithin ", hicI1

tilis l)()\\'CI' structure ,\'()uld Ol1C (la }' diss ()l \ 'c . \ \TC arc speakingof tl1e elemcl1ts ()f tl1e nc ,v c()mll1ercial relationsl1ips : the traffic

ill C Om I Ji Oditie,\ alid 1if:1V,\ created by early capitalist 1()ng -dista I1cctrade .

rI~11e to \\'ns , ()f C()UI'Se, ]lad local markets fron1 t ]1C beginning .

In t ]1C hands ()f t ]le guilds and t ]1C corp ()ratio ils , 110\\'c \ 'cr , t ]1CSC

rclnainc (l stl ' ictly l'egulatcd , servil1g more as instruments f ()rthe domil1ation of the surrounding areas than for free C()nl -

modity cxc ]1ange bet ,\'ecn to \\'n and c()untry .~~} With t ]1C rise oflong -distance tra (le , f ()r ,\'11icI1- acc ()I'ding to Pircnnc 's obsel '-\ 'ati ()ns- tI1c t ()\\'n ' \'as ()nly a base ()f ()perations , markets ()f adifferents

()rt ar ()se. l ~hcy became C()11solidatcd into periodic

tl 'adc fairs an (l , , \'it il tl1C (lc \ 'clopment oftccl1ni (lucs ()fcapitalist

financing (it is kn ()\\!n that letters ()f credit and promiss ()ryn ()tcs ' \'ere in use at tl1C trade fairs ()f tl1e Cl1ampagnc as carl )'

as tl1C tl1irtecntl1 century ), ", ere established as stock exchanges .

In 1531 Ant ,\'erp became a " permancnt trade fair ." :~or I ' lliscommcl 'cial cxcl1angc dc \ 'clopcd according to rules ' \']lich ccr -

tainly \verc manipulated by p ()litical po ,\'cr ; yet a far - reacl1ingnet \\'ork of 110riz()ntal cc ()nomic dependencies emerged that in

principle could n () l ()ngel ' be acc()mmodated by tl1c \ 'el,ticalrelationsl1ips of dependence cl1aractcrizing the organization ()fd ()mination in an estate system based upon a self -contained

11ouschold cc ()n ()my . Of c()ursc , tl1e political order remaineduntl11 'eatcncd by the nc ' " process es ,v I1i C]1, as sucl1 , ]lad no

place in tl1C existing framc ", ()rk , as long as t ]1C members of tl1cold ruling stratuln participated in them only as consumers .

In�

The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere

When they earmarked an increasing portion of ,vhat ,vas produced on their lands for the acquisition of luxury goods made

available tllrough long-distance trade, this by itself did notbring traditional production - and hence the basis of theirrule - into dependence on the ne,v capital .

~rhe traffic in ne,vs that developed alongside the traffic incommodities sho,veda similar pattern . \ Vitll the expansion oftrade, merchants' market -oriented calculations required morefrequent and more exact information about distant events.J.~rom the fourteenth century on , the traditional letter carryingby merchants ' \'as for this reason organized into a kind of guild -based system of correspondence for their purposes . The merchants

organized the first mail routes , the so-called ordinarymail , departing on assigned days. l 'he great trade cities becameat the same time centers for the traffic in ne,vs;:JI the organization

of this traffic on a continuous basis became imperative to

the degree to ,vhich the exchange of commodities and of se-curities became continuous . Almost simultaneously ,vith theol' igin of stock markets , postal services and tIle press institu -tionalized regular contacts and regular communication . ~l~o besure , the mercllants ' \'ere satisfied ,vith a system that limited

information to insiders ; the urban and court chanceries preferred one that served only the needs of administration . Nei -

tIler had a stake in information tllat ' \'as public . \ Vhatcorresponded to tlleir interests , rather , ,vere " ne,vs letters ," theprivate correspondences commercially organized by ne,vsdeal-ers .:~2 ~1' lle ne , v sector of communications , , vith its institutions

for a traffic in ne,vs, fitted in ,vith the existing f()rms of communication ,vitll0ut difficulty as long as the decisi\'e element-

publicness - ,vas lacking . Just as, according to Sombart 's definition, one could speak of " mail " only ,vhen the regular opportunity

for letter dispatch became accessible to the general

public ,3:~ so there existed a press in tIle strict sense only oncethe regular supply of ne,vs became public , tllat is, again , accessible

to the general public . But this occurred only at the end

of the se\ 'enteenth century .:JI Until then the traditional domainof communication in 'Vllicll publicity of representation helds,\'ay ,vas not fundamentally threatened by the ne,v domain ofa public sphere ,vhose decisi \ 'e mark ' \'as the published ,vord .

17

~rhere ,vas as yet no publication of commercially distributedne,vs; the irregularly published reports of recent events ,verenot comparable to the routine prodllction of ne" 's.:~5

~I~11ese elements of early capitalist commercial relations , thatis, the traffic in commodities and ne,vs, manifested their revolutionary

po " 'er only in the mercantilist phase in ,vhich , simultaneously ,vitl1 tl1e modern state , the national and

territorial economies assumed their shapes.:~(j When in 1597the German Hanse ,,,as definitively expelled from London , and""hen a fe,v years later the Company of I\lerchant Adventurersestablished itself in Hamburg , this signified not merely theeconomic and political ascendancy of Great Britain but analtogether ne' " stage of capitalism . I'~rom the sixteenth centuryon merchant companies ,,'ere organized on an expanded capital

basis; unlike the ()ld traders in staple goods , they ,,'ere no

longer satisfied ", ith limited markets . By means of grand expeditions tl1ey opened up ne' " markets for their products .:~7 In

order to meet the rising need for capital and to distl ' ibute tl1egro ,ving risks , these companies soon assumed the form of stockcompanies . Be)'ond this , ho ,,'e\'er , they needed strong politicalguarantees . ~I~he markets for foreign trade ,,'ere no ", justlyconsidered " institutional products " ; they resulted fr ()m politicalefforts and military force . ~I~11e old home to " 'ns ,,'ere thusreplaced as bases ()f opel 'ations by the state territory . ~I~he pl 'O-cess that Heckscl1er describes as the nationalization of the to ,,'n-

based economy began .:~H Of course , ", ithin tl1is process ,vasconstituted ,vl1at has since been called the " nation "- the modern

state ,,'ith its bureaucracies and its increasing financial

needs . ~I~11is deielopment in turn triggered a fee(lback tl1ataccelerated mercantilist policy . Neitl1er private loans made tothe prince by financiers nor public b(~rro ,,"ing ,,"ere sufficientto co\'er these needs ; only an efficient system of taxatio11 metthe demand fOI' capital . rI~he modern state ,,'as basically a statebased ()n taxation , tl1e bureaucracy of tl1e treasury the truecore of its administration . rI~he separation precipitated therebybet " 'een the prince 's pers ()nal 110ldings and ", hat bel ()nged tothe state:~!) ,,'as paradigmatic of tl1e objectificati ()n of personalrelations of dominati ()n . Local administrations ,,'ere brougl1tunder the contr ()l of tl1e state , in Great Britain tl11'ough the

�

Preliminary Dcmarcation of a Typc of Bourgcois Public Sphere

lR�

rrhe Structural ~rransrormation of the Public Sphere

institutioll of tIle Justicc of tIle l>cace, on tIle continent , afterthe Iircnch m()dcl , ,vitll the help of superintendents .

~1~IIC rc (lucti ()n in tIle kind of publicity in \ 'ol \'cd in represcn -tation tl1at , , 'cot 11and in 11and , vith tIle elimination of tl1C cstatc -

based autil ()ritics by th ()sc of the territorial ruler created room {)r an()tI1cr spl1crc kn (),,'n as tIle public sphere in tl1C modernsense ()f tl1C term : tl1C spllcrc ()f public autil ()I"ity . ~l "IIC latterassumed ()bjccti \'c existence in a pennallellt administration anda stalldillg arnlY , No ,v c()ntinuous state activity c()rrcsp ()ndc (l totIle continuity of C()11tact among tl10SC trafficking in commod -itics and nc ' ,'s (stock mal "kct , press). Public authority ,,'as con -solidatcd int () a pal })abic object C()nfl "()nting tllOSC ,,'IIO ,,'eremerely subject t() it an(l 'Vll() at first ,,'ere only negati \'cly dc -fined b)' it . Iior tilCY ,,'ere tl1C pri \'atc pc ()plc ,,'h(), because theyIlcld n() office , ,,'CI"C cxclu (lcd from allY sl1arc in public au-thorit ) ,. " l >ublic " in tl1is narl "O" 'Cr sense , ,'as syn () llymous ,villI

" statc - rclatcd " ; tl1C attribute 110 1()I Igcr rcfcI "rcd t () the rcprc -

scntati \'c "c()urt " ()f a pcrsoll cI1do,,'cd ,,'it il autil ()rity but in -stea(l t() tIle functi ()lling ()fan apparatus ,,'itll regulated spheres()f jurisdicti ()11 an(l cnd (),,'c(l ,,'itll a mollopoly ()\'CI" tllC lcgiti -mate use ()f c()crci ()n . ~1'11c manorial lord 's fcu (lal alltI1 ()rity ,,'astransf ()I"lllc (1 int () tl1C auth ()rity t() " p()licc " ; tl1C pri \'atc pc()plcul1dcr it , as tl1C a(I(II"CSSCCS of pu })Llc authol "ity , formed thepublic .

~rlIC l"clati ()11 bct " 'CCII autl10ritics an(l subjects t()()k ()n a pc -culiar cllaractcr as a result ()f mc I'cantilist policies , p()licics f ()r -mall )' () I"icI1tc (1 t () tl1C 11laintcnancc () f all acti \ 'c balance () f tra (lc .

It is a familiar st()I'y 11()"" tl1C ()pcning up and cxpansi ()n ()[mal"kcts f ()I" f()rcigll tl 'a(lc , ill ,,'11icll tl1C pri \'ilcgc (l c()mpanicsmallagc (l to attaill 11l()11()})()listic c()ntr ()l tl1rougll p()litical prcs -sure- in a " '()I"d , tl1C nc ,v col ()nialism - stcp by step bcgal1 t()SCI'\ 'C tl1C (lc \ 'cl ()pmcllt ()f a c()mmcrcial economy at 11()mc . Inparallel ~lsI1i()n tl1C illtcrcsts ()f capitalists engaged in manu - ~I Ct U I"C prc \'allc (l ()vcr til ()SC engaged in trade . In tl1is " 'ay ()neclcmcl1t ()f tl1C cal"ly capitalist c()mmcrcial system, tl1C tl "a(lc inc()lnm ()(litics , bl"()ugI1t a})()ut a l"c\'()luti ()n , tl1is time in tIle struc -turc ()f })r ()ducti ()n as ,,'ell . ~1'11C exchange of imported ra ,,'materials f ()I" fillisl1c (1 a11(1 scllli - fillisl1cd d ()mcstic goo (ls must

bc \ ' ic , ,'c ( l as a llncti ()n () f tl1C PI "()CCSS in , vhicll tIle ()ld mode

of production ,,'as transf ()rmcd into a capitalist one . Dobb remarks ()n h (),v tl1is shift ,vas reflected in tl1c mercantilist literature of the sc\ 'cntccnt il century . I;'orcign trade no longer

counted per sc as tl1C source ()f \,'caltI1 , but only ins ()far as itaided tl1C cmpl ()ymcnt of tl1c country 's population - employment

created by trade ." Administratiic acti ()n ,,'as increasingly

oriented t() tl1is goal of the capitalist m ()dc of product i ()n . rl ' hc

pri \ 'ilcgcs granted t () occupation -based corp ()rations character -izing tl1C estate regime ,,'ere replaced by royal grants of personal

pri \ 'ilcgcs and ,,'crc aimed at transforming extantmanufactu I'c into capitalist pr ()duction or at creating nc ,v manufacturing

enterprises altogctl1cr . Hand in 11and ,,'ith tl1is , ,'cnt

tl1c regulati ()n of tl1c pl ' O C C S S of production itself , do ,,'n t () tl1clast dctail ." l

Civil s()cicty came into existence as the corollary of a dcpcr -sonalizcd state autil ()rit },. Actiiities and dependencies 11ithcrt ()

relegated to tl1c fra Inc " 'ork of tl1c 11ousel1old cco I10mycmcrgcd from this confinc Incnt into tl1c public sphere . Scl1um -

peter 's obser \ 'ati ()n " tI1at tlcoldforms tl1at 11arnesscd tl1e,,'110Ic person into s)'stcms of supraindi \ 'idual purpose had dieda I1d tl1at each family 's indi \ 'idual cc ()nomy had become tl1Ccentc I' of its cxist C il C C, tl1at tI1crc ,,' it il a priiatc spl1cre ,,'as bol ' n

as a disti I1guisl1abic C iltity in contrast t () tl1e public " "2 onlycaptures ()I1C side of tl1c pr ()ccss- tI1c pI ' i \ 'atizati ()n ()f the process

of economic rcpI '()duction . It glances o \ 'er tl1c latter 's nc ,v

" public " l'clc \ 'ancc . '1~11c CC()I I Omic activity tl1at 11ad becomepI ' i \ 'atc had t() be oriented t (),,'arcl a commodity market tl1at11ad cxpa I1dcci uI1dcr public dirccti ()n and supcr \ 'isi ()n ; tl1cCC()I10mic c()nditi ()ils U I1dc I' ,,'11icI1 tl1is acti \ 'ity n ()", took place

lay outside tl1e CO I1fi il C S ()f tl1c single 11()uscI1 ()ld ; for the firsttime tI1C)' ,,'ere of gc I1crai intc I'cst . Ifannah A I' C I1dt refc I's totl1is private spllere (if " societ) ' tllat Ilas becolile publicly relevant " ,hCI1sl1c cl1aractc I' izcs tl1c ni ()dcI ' I1 (in contrast to tl1c ancient ) rcla -

ti ()nsI1ip ()f tl1c public SI)11cI'c t () tl1c pl -i \ 'atc in terms of tl1c riseof tl1c " s()cial " : " S()cicty is tl1c f( )rm in ,,'11icI1 tl1c fact ()f mutllal

dcpcn (lcI1CC f ()r tl1c sake ()f life and n ()tiling else aSS U Incs publicsignificance , a I1d ,,'11CI-C tl1c acti \ 'itics c()nncctcd ,,' itll shecI ' SUI'-\ 'i \ 'al arc pcr Inittccl t () appeal ' in public ." ' :1

rl ' hc changed c()nditi ()ns of tl1c times ,,'CI-C reflcctccl in tl1C

I ~)�

Preliminary Demarcation of a ~l~ype of Bourgeois Public Sphere

20�The Structurall "rans format ion of the Public Sphere

transformation of the economics handed do , vn from antiquity

into political economy . Indeed the term " economic " itself ,

" , hich until the seventeenth century , vas limited to the sphere

of tasks proper to the oi /~odespoles , the paler familias , the head

of the household , no , v , in the context of a practice of running

a business in accol "d , vith principles of pr ( ) fitability , took on its

11100erl1 ll1eal1il1g . rrlle duties of tIle 110usell010 11eao wel 'e

narro , ved and " economizing " became more closely associated

, vith thriftiness .4 't I \ [ odern economics , vas no longer oriented

to the oi /~os ; the market had replaced the household , and it

became " commercial economics " ( Komlnerzien "lvirlschafl ) . Signif -

icantl ) ' , in eighteenth - century cameralism ( , vhose name derives

from camera , the territorial ruler ' s treasure chamber ) this fore -

runner of political economy , vas part of " police - science , " that

is , of administrative science proper , together , vith the science

of finance on the one hand and " , ith agricultural technology

on the other ( " , hich , vas becoming differentiated from traditional

economics ) . 1 ~] lis sho , vs ho " , closely connected the private

sphere of civil society , vas to the organs of the public

authority .

\ Vithin this political and social order transformed during the

mercantilist phase of capitalism ( and ' V ] lose ne " , structure

found its expression precisely in the differentiation of its political

and social aspects ) the second element of the early capitalist

commercial system , the press , in turn developed a unique

explosive po , ver . rI ~] le first journals in the strict sense , ironically

called " political journals " , appeared , , ' eekly at first , and daily

as early as the middle of the se \ 'enteenth century . In those days

pri \ 'ate correspondence contained detailed and current ne , vs

about Imperial Diets , " ' ars , har \ 'ests , taxes , transports of precious

metals , and , of course , reports on foreign trade .45 Only

a trickle of this stream of reports passed t ] lrough the filter of

these " ne , vs letters " into printed journals . rI ~he recipients of

private correspondence had no interest in their contents becoming

public . On the one hand , therefore , the political journals

responded to a need on the part of the merchants ; on the

other hand , the merchants themselves , vere indispensable to

the journals . rI ~hey , vere called cus 'lodes novellal "Um among their

contemporaries precisely because of this dependence of public

21�

Preliminary Dcmarcation of a 'rypc of Bourgcois Public Sph Cl' C

reporting upon tlleir private exchange of ne " ' s .4(j It , vas essentially

ne , vs from abroad , of the court , and of the less imp ( ) rtant

commercial e \ ' ents that passed througll the sieve of tile mer -

chants ' unofficial information control and the state administra -

tions ' official censorship . Certain categories of traditional

" ne , , ' s " items from the repertoire of the broadsheets , vere also

perpetuated - tIle miracle cures and tllunderstorms , the murders

, pestilences , and burnings .4i l ~hus , the information that

became public , , ' as constituted of residual elements of , vhat , vas

actually available ; nevertheless , it requires explanation , vhy at

this particular time they , , !ere distributed and made generally

accessible , made public at all . It is questionable , vhether the

interests of those , vho made a living by , vriting ne , vs pamphlets

, vould have provided a sufficiently strong impetus ; still , they

did ha \ ' e an interest in publication . I '~or the traffic in ne ' , ' s

de \ ' eloped not only in connection , vith the needs of commerce ;

the ne " ' s itself became a commodity . Commercial ne , vs reporting

, vas therefore subject to the la , vs of the same market to

, vhose rise it o , ved its existence in the first place . It is no

accident that the printed journals often developed out of the

same bureaus of correspondence that already handled hand -

, vritten ne , vsletters . Each item of information contained in a

letter had its price ; it , vas therefore natural to increase the

profits by selling to more people . l ~his in itself , vas already

sufficient reason periodically to print a portion of the available

ne , vs material and to sell it anonymously , thus giving it

publicity .

The interest of the ne ' v ( state ) authorities ( , vhich before long

began to use the press for the purposes of the state administration

) , ho , ve \ .er , , vas of far greater import . Inasmuch as they

made use of this instrument to promulgate instructions and

ordinances , the addressees of the authorities ' announcements

genuinely became " tile public " in the proper sense . I -: rom the

\ 'ery beginning , the political journals had reported on the journeys

and returns of the princes , on tIle arrival of foreign

dignitaries , on balls , " special events " ( Solennitaten ) at court , appointments

, etc . ; in the context of this ne , vs from the Court ,

, vhich can be thougllt of as a kind of transposition of the

publicity of representation into the ne , v form of public sphere ,

22

l1le St I-uctural ' I'rans[ormati ()n ()[ tIle Pul)Llc Sphere

tllere also appeared "so\'ereign ordinances in the subjects' bestinterest." Very soon the press ,vas systematically made to servetIle interests of tIle state administration . As late as March 1769

a press ordinance of tIle Vienna go \ 'ernment witnessed the

style ()f tilis practice: " In order that the ,vriter of the journalmigllt kno ,v ,vllat sort of domestic decrees , arrangements , andother matters are suitable for the public , such are to be compiled

,,'eekly by the autll0rities and are to be for ,varded to theeditol " of tIle journal ." .'H f\ Se kno ,v from the letters of HugoGrotius , then S,vedish emissary in Paris , l{ ichelieu already possessed

ali \ 'ely sense of tIle use fulness of the ne,v instru Inent .4~)He ,,'as a patron of tIle Gazette established in 1631 by Renaudot,'Vllicll served as tIle model for the Gazette if London that appeared

from 16()5 on under Charles II . ~r ,,'o years earlier the

officially autll0rized Intelligencer had appeared in London , itselfpreceded by the Daily 11ltelligencer if CO U1't, Cit)" and County thatsporadically appeared as early as 1643.50 E\'ery,vhere thesead\'ertisers, ,vhich first arose in I..'rance as aids to address agencies

or intelligence agencies, became the preferred instruments

of go\'ernments .51 t\Iany times the intelligence agencies ,,'eretaken o\'er by go\'ernments , and the ad\'ertisers changed intoofficial gazettes. According to an order of 1727 by the Prussiancabinet , this institution ,vas intended " to be useful for the

public " and to " facilitate communication ." Besides the decreesand proclamations " in police, commerce, and manufacture "there appeared the quotations of the produce markets, of thetaxes on food items, and generally of the most important pricesof domestic and imported products ; in addition , stock marketquotations and trade reports and reports on ,vater levels ,verepublished . Accordingly , tIle Palatine-Bavarian governmentcould announce to the "commercial public " an advertiser " inthe service of trade and the common man , so that he can

inform himself both about the decrees that from time to time

are issued by the King and about the prices of various commodities so that he can sell his merchandise at a better price."52

~rhe authorities addressed their promulgations to "the" public, that is, in principle to all subjects. Usually they did not

reach the " common man " in this way , but at best the " educated

classes." Along ,vith the apparatus of the modern state, a new

stl"atum o[ " bourgcois " I)copic arose \\'Ilicll occupied a centralpositi ()n \vitllin tIle " pu })Llc." '1~IIC ()fficials ()[ tIle rulcl "s' admin -istrati ()IIS \vcre its cOrC- Ill ()stlyjurists (at least on tIle continent ,\VhCI"C tIle tecllniquc ()[ tIle rccci \'cd !{ ()illan la\v \\'as adoptedas an instrument [or tIle rati ()nalizatioll ()[ s()cial ()rganizati ()n).Added t() tllem \\'CI"C d ()ctors , pastors , officers , I)ro [ess()rs, and"scllolal "s," \Vll() \\'CI"C at tIle t()I) ()[ a Illeral "cllY l"cacllillg do \\'ntllrough SCII()()ltcacllcl "S and scl-ibes t() tIle " pe()Pie." :>:~

!;or in tIle lllcantimc tIle genuine "burgilcrs ," tIle ()ld ()CCU-pational ()rdcrs o[ cra [ ts Illen and S I I Opkccl )crs , suffered dO\VII-\\'arcl s()cial m()bility ; tilCY lost tlleir importance along \\'itll tIle\'cry t()\\'ns ul )()n \\'II()SC citizells ' rights tlleir status \\'as based.j\ t tile sanic time , tIle gl"Cat merchants outgrc \\' tIle confillillg[ ramc \\'ork ()f' tile to \\'ns and in tile [ ()rm ()[ companies linkedthemscl \,cs Dll"cctly \\'itll tIle state. 'l ~Ilus , tIle "cal)italists ," tileIncrchants , bankers , entrepreneurs , alld manufacturers (atleast \Vllel"e, unlike in Haillburg , tIle to \vns could not maintaintheir independence fi "om the tcrrit ()rial rulers ) belonged t() thatgr ()up ()[ the "b()UI"ge()is" \\'II (), like tile nc \v catcg ()ry o[ SCIIOI-ars , \\'crc n()t really " burghers " in tile traditio Ilal sense.:>! rl"Illsstratum ()[ "b()urge ()is" \vas tile real cal"ricI - ()[ tile public , \\'hicil[ r ()nl tile ()utsct \\'as a reacli Ilg public . Unlike tIle great urbanmcl -cllants and ()fficials \VIIO, in [ ()rmer da}'s, could })c assimi -latcd by tIle cultivated nobility ()[ tIle Italian !{ cllaissance c()urts ,tiley c()uld n() longer be illtcgratcd in toto int () tile no })le cultureat the close o[ tile Baroquc peri ()d . rl ' llcir C()mmallding statusin tile ne\v sphere ()f ci\,il society led illstcad t() a tension bet\\'ecn " to \\'n" and "court ," \\'II()Se t}'pical form in di [ [creIlt

nati ()ns \vill c()ncern us later .:>:>

In tilis stratum , \\'hicil m()rc tllan allY ()tiler \\'as affected alldcalled upon by mercantilist policies , the state autilorities e\'()keda l-esonallce leading the publiculn , tile a})stl"act counterpart o[public autllorit }" int () all a\varencss ()[ itself as tIle latter 'sop -ponent , tllat is, as tIle public o[ tIle no \\' CIllCI"ging public 's'phereif civil "ociety. I~~or tile latter developed to tIle extent to \vhicllthe public concern l"cgardillg the pri \ 'atc SI)IICI"e ()[ ci\'il society\\'as no longer c()nfined to tile autlloritics but \vas consideredby the subjects as onc that \vas properly tllcirs . Besides tIlecarriers of c()mmercial and finance capitalism , a growing group

()~�

Pr"climinary Demar "calior1 of a l 'ype of Bour .\J;eois Public Spl1ere

24

The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere

of entrepreneurs , manufacturers , and factory o\vners becamedependent upon measures taken by the state administration\vhose intent certainly \\'as not merely that of controlling commercial

-entrepreneurial activity but also of encouraging initiative through regulation . !\Iercantilism did not at all , as

\videspread prejudice \vould have it , favor state enterprise ;rather , its commercial policy , albeit in a bureaucratic fashion ,promoted the establishment and dissolution of private busi -nesses run in a capitalist manner .5l) 1~he relationship bet \\'eenthe authorities and the subjects thereby assumed the peculiarambivalence of public regulation and private initiati \ 'e. In this\\~ay the zone in \\'hicll public authority , by \vay of continuousadministrati \'e acts, maintained contact \vith private people , \vasrendered problematic . rl~his in fact involved a wider circle ofpersons than those participating directly in capitalist production

. 'l~o the degree to \vhich the latter became pervasive , thenumber of self -sufficient economic units shrank and the dependence

of local markets upon regional and national ones

gre \v. Accordingly , broad strata of the population , especially inthe to \\'ns, \\'ere affected in their daily existence as consumersby the regulations of mercantilist policy . Not the notoriousdress codes but taxes and duties and , generally , official inter -\'entions into the pri \ 'atized household finally came to constitute

the target of a de \'eloping critical sphere . \ Vhen there \vas

a scarcity of \vheat , bread cosumption on l'~riday e\renings \vasprohibited by official decree .5i Because, on the one hand , thesociety no \v confr ()nting the state clearly separated apri \'atedomain from public authority and because, on the other hand ,it turned the re product i()n of life into something transcendingthe confines of private domestic authority and becoming asubject of public intel 'est, that zone of continuous administra -ti \re contact became "critical " also in the sense that it provokedthe critical judgment of a public making use of its reason . rrhepublic could take on tilis challenge all the better as it requiredmerely a change in tIle function of the instrument \vith \VllOSehelp the state administration had already turned society into apublic aff 'ail' in a specific sense- the press.

As early as in the last third of the seventeenth century journals \\'ere complemented by periodicals containing not primar -

25

Preliminary DCmal"Cation of a rI'ypc of Bourgeois Public Sphere

ily information but pedagogical instructions and even criticismand revie,\'s. At first there ,vere scholarly periodicals speakingto the circle of educated laymen: Denys de Sallo's journal desSavants of 1665 , Otto l\ lencken 's Acta Eruditorum of 1682 , and

finally the famous 1\1 0 na tsgespriiche of 1688 by Thomasius ; theseforged the model for an entire genre of periodicals. In thecourse of the first half of the eighteenth century , in the guiseof the so-called learned article , critical reasoning made its ,vayinto the daily press . When , from 1729 on , the Hallenser Intel -ligenzblatt, besides the usual material contained in advertisersalso published learned articles, book revie", s, and occasionally"a historical report sketched by a professor and relevant tocurrent events ," the Prussian King ,,,as moved to take the de-\ 'elopment into his o", n hands . E\'en the use of one 'so ", nreason as such ,vas subjected to regulation . All chaired professors

of the faculties of la"" medicine, and philosophy ", ere totake turns in "submitting to the editor of the gazette, expeditiously

and no later than Thursday , a special note, composed

in a pure and clear style of ", riting ."5H In general "the scholars,,'ere to inform tl1e public of useful truths ." In this instancethe bourgeois ", riters still made use of their reason at the behestof the territorial ruler ; soon they ,,'ere to think their o", nthoughts , directed against the autl1orities. In a rescript of l;' rederick

II from 1784 one reads: "Apri \'ate person has no rigl1t

to pass public and perhaps e\'en disappro \'ingjudgment on theactions, procedures, la,vs, regulations , and ordinances of sovereigns

and courts, tl1eir officials , assemblies, and courts of la,v,

or to promulgate or publish in print pertinent reports that hemanages to obtain . l;'or apri \'ate person is not at all capable ofmaking such judgment , because lie lacks complete kno,vledgeof circumstances and motiles ." ;)~) A fe ", years before the l ;' rench

l{ e\ 'olution , the conditions in Prussia looked like a static model

of a situation that in l;' rance and especially in Great Britain hadbecome fluid at tl1e beginning of the century . rl~he inhibitedjudgments ,,'ere called "public " in vie", of a public sphere tl1at,,'ithout question l1ad counted as a sphere of public autl10rity,but ,,'as no ,..; casting itself loose as a forum in ", hich the pri \'atepeople, come together to form a public , readied themselves tocompel public authority to legitimate itself before public opin -

26

l 'he Structural 'rransformation of the Public Sphere

ion . rI'hc public um dc \'clopcd into the public , the sul Jjectum intothe [reasoning ] subject , tl1C rccei \'cr of regulations from aboveinto tile ruling autil ()ritics ' ad \'crsary .

rI~11c histor }' of ' \'ords prcscr \'cd tl"a C C S of tl1is momentousshift . In C; rcat Britain , from the middle of the sc\'cntcc I1thccntur }' on , tl1crc ,vas talk of " public ," ,vllcrcas until then" \\'orld " or " mankind " ' \'as usual . Similarly , in ~'rancc Ie publicbegan to dcn ()tc ,\'11at in the cigl1tccnth century , according toC; rimm 's ~~Tijrtel'buch, also gained currency tl1roughout Gcr -many as Publillulll (its use spreading from l~crlin ). Until tl1cnone sp()kc ()f the " ,\'orl (l of readcrs " (Lese1velt), ()r simply ()f the" \\'()rl (l " (~V ell) in tl1C sense still used t()day : all tile ,v()Rid, toutIe mollde. Adclung dra \\'s a (listinction bct \...'ccn the public tl1atgathcl "cd as a cr ()\\,(l around a speaker or actor in a publicplace , and the I Jeie1ilelt (,\'()Rid of rca (lers ).lj() l~otll , 110\\'C\'cr ,\V Cl' C il1stanccs ()f a "critical (richtelld ) public ." \ V Ilat C\'Cr ,vassubmittc (l t() thc ,judgmcnt of the public gained Publizitiit (publicity

). At tile cn (l ()f tl1C sc\'cntccnth century tl1C l"~nglish " publicity" \\'as b()rr ()\\'cd from tile l..' rcnch publicite ; in C;crmany the

,\'ord surfaced ill tile cigl1tccntl1 ccntur )'. Cl'iticism itself ' \'asprcscntc (l ill tile f()rm ()f iiffentliclle i\ leillullg , a ,\'()rd f()rmcd intile second Ilalf ()f tile cigl1tccntl1 century in analogy to o Pinionpubliqlle . In C; rcat l~ritain " public ()pinion " arose at about thesame time ; tile cxpr C S Si()ll "gclleral ()pinion ," 110\\'c\'cr , IladbCCl1 in use l()ng bcf ()l'C.