The Cambridge Descartes lexicon

778 Pages·2016·7.68 MB·english

by  Lawrence Nolan (ed.)

THE CAMBRIDGE DESCARTES LEXICON
The Cambridge Descartes Lexicon is the defi nitive reference source on René
Descartes, “the father of modern philosophy” and arguably among the most
important philosophers of all time. Examining the full range of Descartes’
achievements and legacy, the lexicon includes 256 in-depth entries that explain
key concepts relating to his thought. Cumulatively they uncover interpretative
disputes, trace his infl uences, and explain how his work was received by critics
and developed by followers. There are entries on topics such as certainty, c ogito
ergo sum, doubt, dualism, free will, God, geometry, happiness, human being,
knowledge, M editations on First Philosophy, mind, passion, physics, and virtue,
which are written by the largest and most distinguished team of Cartesian schol-
ars ever assembled for a collaborative research project – ninety-one contributors
from ten countries.
Lawrence Nolan is Professor of Philosophy at California State University, Long
Beach. He is the author of numerous articles on the two leading Cartesians,
Descartes and Malebranche, and the editor of the highly acclaimed Primary and
Secondary Qualities: The Historical and Ongoing Debate.

The Cambridge
DESCARTES LEXICON
(cid:2)
Edited by
Lawrence Nolan
California State University, Long Beach
32 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10013-2473, USA
Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge.
It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of
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www.cambridge.org
Information on this title: w ww.cambridge.org/9780521193528
© Cambridge University Press 2016
This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception
and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,
no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published 2016
Printed in the United States of America
A catalog record for this publication is available from the British Library .
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Nolan, Lawrence.
The Cambridge Descartes lexicon / Lawrence Nolan, California State University, Long Beach.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-521-19352-8 (hardback)
1. Descartes, René, 1596–1650 – Dictionaries. I. Title.
B 1831. N 65 2015
194–dc23c 2015023856
ISBN 978-0-521-19352-8 Hardback
Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs
for external or third-party Internet Web sites referred to in this publication and does not
guarantee that any content on such Web sites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.
Contents

List of Figures page xiv
List of Contributors xvii
Abbreviations xxiii
Introduction and Notes on How to Use This Work xxv
Acknowledgments xxix
Chronology xxxi
Descartes’ Life and Works xxxv
Annotated Bibliography lxvii
(cid:3) ENTRIES 1
Abstraction versus Exclusion 1
Accident, Real (s ee Quality, Real )
Action ( see Passion )
Adventitious ( see   Idea )
Algebra ( see Geometry ; Mathematics )
Analogy 3
Analysis versus Synthesis 7
Anatomy and Physiology 13
Angel 16
Animal 19
Animal Spirits 26
Aquinas, Thomas 28
v
vi / Contents
Arnauld, Antoine 31
Astell, Mary 33
Atom 35
Attribute 38
Augustine, Aurelius 44
Automaton 46
Axiom ( see Common Notion)
Bacon, Francis 48
Baillet, Adrien 49
Balzac, Jean-Louis Guez de 50
Basso, Sebastian (Sébastien Basson) 52
Bayle, François 53
Bayle, Pierre 55
Beaugrand, Jean de 56
Beaune, Florimond de ( see Debeaune, Florimond )
Beeckman, Isaac 57
Being, Formal versus Objective 60
Bérulle, Pierre de 65
Beverwijck, Johan Van 67
Blood, Circulation of ( see Harvey, William ;  Heart )
Body 68
Body, Human (s ee Body ; Human Being )
Body, Proof of the Existence of 70
Bourdin, Pierre 75
Boyle, Robert 77
Brasset, Henri 78
Brégy, Nicolas Léonor Flesselles de 79
Buitendyck 80
Burman, Frans (Franciscus) 81
Calvinism 83
Carcavi, Pierre de 84
Cartesianism 85
Caterus, Johannes (Johan Kater or de Kater) 89
Cause 91
Cavendish, Margaret (Duchess of Newcastle) 98
Cavendish, William (Marquess of Newcastle) 99
Certainty 100
Chanut, Hector-Pierre 103
Charlet, Étienne 105
Charleton, Walter 105
Charron, Pierre 106
Contents / vii
Christina, Queen of Sweden 108
Circle, Cartesian 109
Clarity and Distinctness 118
Clauberg, Johannes 123
Clavius, Christopher 124
Clerselier, Claude 126
Cogito Ergo Sum 128
Color ( see Quality, Sensible; Rainbow )
Colvius, Andreas 135
Comments on a Certain Broadsheet 136
Common Notion 138
Common Sense 141
Compendium of Music 143
Concurrence versus Conservation, Divine 145
Conimbricenses (Coimbrans) 148
Conservation of Motion, Principle of 150
Containment, Eminent versus Formal 152
Conversation with Burman 154
Conway, Anne 156
Cordemoy, Géraud de 157
Correspondence 158
Cosmological Argument 165
Cosmology 175
Creation ( see Eternal Truth ;  God)
Cudworth, Ralph 179
Daniel, Gabriel 181
Debeaune (de Beaune), Florimond 182
Deduction 183
Defi nition 187
Demon, Evil (s ee   Doubt )
Desargues, Girard 189
Description of the Human Body 190
Desgabets, Robert 192
Determination (s ee Force and Determination )
Digby, Kenelm 194
Dinet, Jacques 196
Dioptrics 197
Discourse on Method 199
Distinction (Real, Modal, and Rational) 202
Divisibility 211
Doubt 213
viii / Contents
Dreaming ( see   Doubt )
Dreams, Descartes’ Three 222
Du Hamel (Duhamel), Jean 225
Dualism 226
Duration ( see   Time)
Early Writings ( see Private Thoughts )
Earth, Motion of the 231
Element 233
Elisabeth, Princess of Bohemia 234
Ens Per Se ( see Human Being; Substance )
Enumeration 237
Error, Theodicies of 240
Essence 247
Essence-Existence Distinction ( see Existence )
Eternal Truth 251
Ethics ( see Virtue )
Eucharist ( see Transubstantiation )
Eustachius a Sancto Paulo (Eustache Asseline) 257
Exclusion ( see Abstraction versus Exclusion )
Existence 259
Experiment 262
Explanation 266
Extension 272
Extrinsic Denomination 276
Factitious (s ee   Idea )
Faculty 279
Faith, Religious 281
Falsity, Material 284
Fermat, Pierre de 289
Fonseca, Pedro da 291
Force and Determination 292
Form, Substantial 297
Formal Reality (s ee Being, Formal versus Objective )
Foucher, Simon 299
Free Will 302
Freinshemius (Johannes Freinsheim) 311
Fromondus, Libertus (Libert Froidment) 312
Galilei, Galileo 314
Gassendi, Pierre 316
Generosity (s ee Passion ; Virtue )
Geometrical Exposition 319
Contents / ix
Geometry 321
Geometry 330
Geulincx, Arnold 332
Gibieuf, Guillaume 334
God 335
Golius, Jacob 344
Grandamy, Jacques 345
Gravity 346
Habit 349
Happiness 352
Harvey, William 355
Heart 357
Heaviness (s ee Gravity )
Heereboord, Adriaan 360
Hobbes, Thomas 362
Hogelande, Cornelis Van 365
Holenmerism (Holenmerianism) 366
Huet, Pierre-Daniel 368
Human Being 369
Huygens, Christiaan 379
Huygens, Constantijn 380
Hydrostatics 382
Hyperaspistes 384
Idea 387
Illusion, Argument from ( see   Doubt )
Image ( see Idea ; Imagination)
Imagination 396
Immortality (s ee Soul, Immortality of the )
Indefi nite ( see Infi nite versus Indefi nite )
Individuation 400
Induction ( see Enumeration)
Inertia 405
Infi nite versus Indefi nite 407
Innate ( see   Idea )
Intellect 410
Intuition ( see Clarity and Distinctness; D eduction )
Jansenism 413
Jesuit 414
Judgment 418
Kepler, Johannes 421
Knowledge (S cientia ) 423
x / Contents
La Flèche, Collège de ( see Jesuit )
La Forge, Louis de 429
La Grange, Jean-Baptiste de 430
Lamy, Bernard 432
Lamy, François 433
Language 434
Law of Nature 440
Le Bossu, René 446
Le Grand, Antoine 447
Leibniz, Gottfried Wilhelm 449
Light 452
Locke, John 458
Logic ( see Deduction; Syllogism )
Loyola, Ignatius (s ee Jesuit )
Luynes, Duc de (Louis-Charles d’Albert) 460
Machine 462
Magnetism 466
Malebranche, Nicolas 467
Mathematics 4 70
Mathesis Universalis 475
Matter ( see Body ; Extension)
Mechanics 478
Medicine 483
Meditations on First Philosophy 487
Memory 490
Mersenne, Marin 493
Mesland, Denis 496
Metaphysics 498
Meteors 506
Method 508
Meyssonnier, Lazare 513
Mind 514
Mind-Body Interaction ( see Cause ; Human Being )
Mind-Body Union (s ee Human Being )
Mode 520
Morality ( see Virtue )
More, Henry 524
Morin, Jean-Baptiste 526
Motion 527
Music ( see Compendium of Music )
Mydorge, Claude 531