The Filangieri-Franklin Correspondence: Enlightening Views from the 18th Century

The talk focused on the correspondence between Gaetano Filangieri and Benjamin Franklin as a remarkable episode in the intellectual history of the Atlantic Enlightenment. It examined the legal and political significance of their exchange, highlighting Filangieri’s reflections on legislation, civic reform, and public happiness, and Franklin’s role as a privileged interlocutor in the American context. The talk presented the correspondence as evidence of a direct dialogue between the Neapolitan Enlightenment and the founding generation of the United States, showing how ideas developed in Naples could resonate within debates on liberty, constitutionalism, and the purposes of government.