Espace social et imaginaire social : les intellectuels frustrés au XVIIe siècle

Society in Fact and Vision : Frustrated Intellectuals in 17th Century This article begins with a question framed both historical and sociological terms : what are the social and psychological effects on a given population of intellectuals when the number of university graduates becomes greater than the number of posts available to them? This study first tries to see if the hypothesis derived from the British case can be extended to all of Europe. It therefore looks at both the situation within the universities and the job market for graduates. The discussion then moves from social behavior to the ideological reasons for the surplus of intellectuals which is examined in its 17th century manifestations (literary, political and sociological) and in its longer-term features (notions of the intellectual and notions of knowledge). Thus this historical outline also serves as a fable about the present.Chartier Roger. Espace social et imaginaire social : les intellectuels frustrés au XVIIe siècle. In: Annales. Economies, sociétés, civilisations. 37ᵉ année, N. 2, 1982. pp. 389-400