Borbala Pigler

Borbala鈥檚 research explores the idea of the diseased body politic in the context of colonisation in early seventeenth-century Britain. She challenges the current understanding of early modern empire by arguing that idleness as a pathological sign of melancholy played a central role in the expansionist discourse. The research proposes that the allegory of the organic body and the state was conceived much more literally than scholars previously thought, following the Aristotelian and Galenic traditions that rendered the world in terms of micro- and macrocosms of the body politic. By expanding the context and canon traditionally analysed in intellectual history, Borbala aims to show that the sources for the study of intellectual history were not at all theoretical, quite the opposite: they were very much used, debated, and put into practice. By directing attention to these texts, Borbala鈥檚 thesis argues that the inseparability of the health of the body, mind, and the state was taken for granted by the citizens of early modern Britain. It was crucial for any form of 鈥済ood鈥� constitution to work effectively, but even more so in republics where citizens were required to participate in political life. Borbala鈥檚 study, therefore, is an exploration of the importance of the connection between individual health and the proper functioning of the state.

Before returning to 果冻影院 to pursue her PhD, Borbala studied English and History in Budapest and London, with her research focusing on rhetoric and the problem of female rule in early modern Britain.

Borbala鈥檚 research is funded by the London Arts and Humanities Partnership.

PhD

Supervisor:听Professor Angus Gowland (primary) and Dr. Elaine Leong (secondary)
Working title:听Empire against Melancholy: Healing the Body Politic in Britain, c. 1558鈥�1630
Expected completion date: 2025