Descartes among the Scholastics (History of Science and Medicine Library: Scientific and Learned Cultures and Their Institutions: Vol. 1)

373 Pages·2011·2.49 MB·English

by  Roger Ariew

Descartes among the Scholastics
History of Science
and Medicine Library
VOLUME20
Scientific and Learned
Cultures and Their
Institutions
Editor
M. Feingold
CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology
VOLUME1
Descartes among
the Scholastics
By
Roger Ariew
LEIDEN•BOSTON
2011
Coverillustration:from‘DisputeofQueenCristinaVasaandRenéDescartes’(1884),byNils
Forsberg(1842–1934),adaptedbyDavidA.Ariew.
Thisbookisprintedonacid-freepaper.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Ariew,Roger.
DescartesamongtheScholastics/byRogerAriew.
p.cm.–(Historyofscienceandmedicinelibrary;v.20)(Scientificandlearnedcultures
andtheirinstitutions;v.1)
Rev.ed.of:DescartesandthelastScholastics.1999.
Includesbibliographicalreferences(p. )andindex.
ISBN978-90-04-20724-0(hardcover:alk.paper)
1.Descartes,René,1596-1650.2.Scholasticism–History–17thcentury.I.Ariew,Roger.
DescartesandthelastScholastics.II.Title.III.Series.
B1875.A652011
194–dc22
2011011642
ISSN 1872-0684
ISBN 9789004207240
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgments..................................................... ix
ListofIllustrations..................................................... xi
ListofAbbreviations................................................... xiii
Introduction ........................................................... 1
.DescartesandtheLastScholastics:ObjectionsandReplies ....... 13
.DescartesandtheScotists .......................................... 71
.Ideas,beforeandafterDescartes ................................... 101
.TheCartesianDestinyofFormandMatterandItsCritics ........ 127
.Descartes,Basso,andToletus:ThreeKindsofCorpuscularians... 157
.ScholasticsandtheNewAstronomyontheSubstanceofthe
Heavens ............................................................. 179
.DescartesandtheJesuitsofLaFlèche:TheEucharist.............. 217
.CondemnationsofCartesianism:TheExtensionandUnityof
theUniverse......................................................... 241
.Cartesians,Gassendists,andCensorship........................... 267
.TheCogitointheSeventeenthCentury ........................... 295
Bibliography ........................................................... 331
Index ................................................................... 351

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This researchwas assisted by grants and fellowships from the National
EndowmentfortheHumanities,anindependentfederalagencyandthe
NationalScienceFoundation(grantno.DIR-).Noneofitwould
havebeenpossiblewithoutthefundstheseinstitutionsmadeavailable—
norwouldIhavebeenabletoaffordtheresearchtimeattheBibliothèque
Nationale in Paris. I am also grateful to the Bibliothèque Nationale for
allowing me to use its wonderful facilities and for providing me with
microfichesofcountlessvolumes.Imustsay,theirwebsiteGallica isan
amazing,absolutelyinvaluableresource.
Theseessayswerewrittenatvarioustimesandforvariousaudiences.
Portionsofthevolumewereread(atdifferentstagesoftheircomposition)
at many universities, workshops,and conferences.I am indebted to all
theseaudiencesfortheirquestionsandcomments.
I am also grateful to various publishers for allowing me to use some
ofmypreviouslyprintedmaterials.Partsofchapterwerepublishedas
“DescartesandScholasticism:theIntellectualBackgroundtoDescartes’
Thought,” in Cambridge Companion to Descartes, ed. John Cottingham
(Cambridge:CambridgeUniv.Press,),pp.–.Muchofchapter
waspublishedas“Ideas,inandbeforeDescartes,”JournaloftheHistory
ofIdeas():–,andsomeofchapteras“TheCartesianDes-
tinyofFormandMatter,”EarlyScienceandMedicine():–,
both co-authoredwith Marjorie Grene. Portions of chapter  appeared
as“TheoryofCometsatParisduringtheSeventeenthCentury,”Journal
of the History of Ideas  (): –. An earlier version of chap-
terwasissuedas“Damnedifyoudo:CartesiansandCensorship,–
,”PerspectivesonScience():–.Portionsofchapters,,
, and  were initially published in French—chapter  as “Descartes,
Bassonet la scolastique renaissante,” in Descartes et la Renaissance,ed.
EmmanuelFayeandchapteras“Lespremièrestentativesversunesco-
lastique cartésienne: la correspondance de Descartes et les Jésuites de
La Flèche sur l’Eucharistie,” in Momenti della biografia intellettuale di
Descartes nella Correspondance, ed. Jean-Robert Armogathe and Giu-
lia Belgioioso. A portion of chapter  was published as “Les Principia
en France et les condamnations du cartésianisme,” in Descartes: Prin-
cipia Philosophiae (–), ed. Jean-Robert Armogatheand Giulia