'Noble just industrialism' : Saint-Simonism in the political thought of Thomas Carlyle

Abstract

This thesis deals with the contribution of the Saint-Simonians, a group of early French socialists, to the political thought of Thomas Carlyle, one of the most eminent Victorian intellectuals. First, an introduction surveys the existing secondary literature, and discusses the theory and method employed in the thesis. The subsequent chapter briefly recounts the story of Carlyle's encounter with the Saint-Simonians during the early 1830s. Each of the following five chapters deals with the 'transfer' of a particular Saint-Simonian concept, that is, the use that Carlyle made of the concept in a specifically British context. These five concepts are, broadly: (1) 'Industrialism'; (2) History; (3) Democracy and Laissez-Faire; (4) the 'Organisation of Labour'; (5) Empire. Finally, an epilogue addresses the contribution of Carlyle's thought to the early Labour movement, 1880-1935.