Rebellious Science in Spanish Politics of the Nineteenth Century

In this thesis, I argue that scientific discourse in nineteenth-century Spain both rejected and embraced Romanticism. Scientists and progressive politicians may have rejected Romanticism in their quest to enter the modern world through science, but, as they did so, they fit into the model of the Romantic Rebel that prevailed in the rest of Europe, where science was seen as a Romantic endeavor.;However, defenders of scientific regeneration in Spain saw Romanticism as something very close to absolutism and religious intolerance, and, as such, dangerous for science. Even so, I argue, Spanish defenders of science, who worked in a time when an absolute monarch ruled Spain and religious radicalism pervaded the country, participated in the Romantic impetus. In their struggle against the dominant powers of church and king, these rebellious spirits allied themselves with the European Romantic community.;In addition, in current twenty-first century Spain, Modernity advances the dialogue on Romanticism and science. As a result of the 2008 global economic crisis, there has been a return to many axioms of nineteenth century Romantic philosophy. Science still plays a Romantic and subversive role in current Spain. This thesis also concludes that Romanticism can still be seen in politics, science, and popular culture in our century. There is a resurgence of rebelliousness, creativity, exploration, and imagination in twenty-first century Spain.