DOCSLIB.ORG

Quaestiones Infinitiae

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Quaestiones Infinitiae Quaestiones Infinitiae PUBLICATIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGIOUS STUDIES UTRECHT UNIVERSITY VOLUME LXXII Copyright © 2013 by R.O. Buning All rights reserved Cover illustrations, above: Reneri’s signature from his letter to De Wilhem of 22 October 1631 (courtesy of Universiteitsbibliotheek Leiden). Below: Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Portrait of a Scholar (1631), The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia/Wikimedia Commons, http://commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Rembrandt_Harmenszoon_van_Rijn_-_A_Scholar.JPG. Cover design: R.O. Buning This publication has been typeset in the “Brill” typeface. © 2011 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands. All rights reserved. http://www.brill.com/brill-typeface Printed by Wöhrmann Printing Service, Zutphen ISBN 978-94-6103-036-8 Henricus Reneri (1593-1639) Descartes’ Quartermaster in Aristotelian Territory Henricus Reneri (1593-1639) Descartes’ kwartiermaker in aristotelisch territorium (met een samenvatting in het Nederlands) Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Universiteit Utrecht op gezag van de rector magnificus, prof. dr. G.J. van der Zwaan, ingevolge het besluit van het college voor promoties in het openbaar te verdedigen op dinsdag 12 november 2013 des middags te 12.45 uur door Robin Onno Buning geboren op 7 juni 1977 te Nijmegen Promotor: Prof. dr. Th.H.M. Verbeek The research for this dissertation has been conducted within the project “Descartes and his Network,” which was made possible by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) under grant number 360-20-140. Contents Acknowledgements ix Abbreviations xi Introduction 1 Chapter 1. Biography I: A Promising Philosopher 13 1.1. Birth and Early Youth (1593-1611) 13 1.2. Liberal Arts Studies at Leuven (1611-1613) 14 1.2.1. The College of the Falcon 14 1.2.2. The Philosophy Curriculum at Leuven 15 1.3. The Great Seminary in Liège (1613-1615/16) 18 1.4. The Walloon College in Leiden (1616-1621) 19 1.4.1. Application 19 1.4.2. The Curriculum at the Walloon College 20 1.4.3. Dismissed 26 1.5. Private Tutor in Amsterdam (1621-1625) 28 1.6. Leiden (1625-1626) 29 1.6.1. Continuation of Reneri’s Tutoring Job 29 1.6.2. Medical Studies 30 1.7. Amsterdam (1626-1629) 33 1.7.1. Tutor Again 33 1.7.2. Candidate for a Chair of Philosophy at Leiden 34 1.8. Leiden (1629-1631) 36 1.8.1. Tutor Once Again 36 1.8.2. Candidate for a Chair of Philosophy at Franeker 38 1.8.3. Alternative Career Plans 39 Chapter 2. Biography II: Professor of Philosophy 41 2.1. Deventer (1631-1634) 41 2.1.1. The Selection Procedure 41 2.1.2. Appointment to the Chair 44 2.1.3. The Teaching of Philosophy at Deventer 45 2.1.4. Settling in Deventer 47 vi CONTENTS 2.1.5. Financial Problems 49 2.1.6. Growing Discontent 52 2.2. Utrecht (1634-1639) 54 2.2.1. The Selection Procedure 54 2.2.2. The Inauguration 56 2.2.3. The Teaching of Philosophy at Utrecht 58 2.2.4. Overworked 61 2.2.5. The Funeral 65 2.2.6. The Aftermath 68 Chapter 3. Network I: Social Capital 71 3.1. Introduction 71 3.2. The Roots of Reneri’s Network 73 3.2.1. The Walloon College 73 3.2.2. André Rivet 75 3.3. Tutor to the Children of the Amsterdam Patriciate 76 3.3.1. Pauw 76 3.3.2. L’Hermite 79 3.3.3. Van Lockhorst 80 3.3.4. One Step Up the Social Ladder 81 3.4. Patrons among the Patriciate 83 3.4.1. The Liefhebber 83 3.4.2. David de Wilhem 85 3.4.3. Constantijn Huygens 88 3.4.4. Cornelis Booth 90 3.4.5. The Circle around Pieter Cornelisz. Hooft 92 3.5. Marriage as a Social Instrument 93 3.5.1. Vivien 93 3.5.2. Van Velthuysen 96 3.5.3. Another Step Up the Social Ladder 97 3.6. Conclusion 99 Chapter 4. Philosophy I: A Naive Empiricist 101 4.1. Introduction 101 4.2. Experiments and Inventions 102 4.2.1. ‘Secrets’ 102 4.2.2. Creation of an Artificial Rainbow 105 4.2.3. The Camera Obscura 108 4.2.4. The Telescope 114 CONTENTS vii 4.2.5. The Thermometer 116 4.2.6. The Water Clock 121 4.2.7. The Microscope and Microscopic Investigations 123 4.3. Educational Reformer 125 4.3.1. The Decline of Philosophy 125 4.3.2. A Baconian Programme 127 4.3.3. The Investigation of Causes 129 4.3.4. Compared to the Methods of Bacon and Descartes 131 4.3.5. Reception 136 4.4. Conclusion 137 Chapter 5. Philosophy II: Cartesian Elements 139 5.1. Introduction 139 5.2. Heliocentrism 140 5.3. A Mechanical Corpuscular Theory of Matter 143 5.3.1. Two-Element Theory 143 5.3.2. A Mechanical Interpretation 147 5.3.3. Reneri’s Debt to the Corpuscular Tradition 149 5.3.4. Two Disputations on the Vacuum 151 5.3.5. Eclecticism 158 5.4. More Outspoken Cartesian 161 5.5. Conclusion 165 Chapter 6. Network II: Circulation of Knowledge 167 6.1. Introduction 167 6.2. Scholars Living in the Republic 168 6.2.1. Isaac Beeckman 168 6.2.2. Johann Elichmann 170 6.2.3. Professors at the Amsterdam Athenaeum Illustre 171 6.3. French Connections 173 6.3.1. Pierre Gassendi 173 6.3.2. Marin Mersenne 179 6.4. The Hartlib Circle 181 6.4.1. Samuel Hartlib and John Dury 181 6.4.2. Reneri’s Method of Logic 184 6.4.3. William Speed 187 6.4.4. John Jonston and Johannes Huniades 189 6.4.5. Johann Heinrich Bisterfeld 191 6.4.6. A Circle of Former Reformed Ministers in Cologne 194 viii CONTENTS 6.5. Conclusion 199 Chapter 7. Network III: Friend and Follower of Descartes 201 7.1. Introduction 201 7.2. Reneri’s Relationship with Descartes 202 7.2.1. Reneri’s Admiration for Descartes 202 7.2.2. Reneri’s Support of Descartes 207 7.3. Network 214 7.3.1. Reneri’s Role in the Formation of Descartes’ Network 214 7.3.2. The Circle of Mathematicians around Descartes 216 7.4. Reneri’s Promotion of Descartes’ Philosophy in Utrecht 223 7.4.1. Reneri’s Students 223 7.4.2. Friends with an Interest in Philosophy 229 7.5. Conclusion 233 Conclusion 237 Appendices 241 Appendix 1: Correspondence 241 Appendix 2: Disputations Presided Over by Reneri 250 Appendix 3: Reneri about Descartes 252 Appendix 4: A Letter from Reneri to Jonston of Around 1634 258 Bibliography 261 Index of Names 291 Samenvatting 297 Curriculum Vitae 309 Acknowledgements This dissertation could not have been written without the help of many people and institutions. First of all, I would like to thank my colleagues in the Department of Philosophy, who made it such a pleasant work environment. I am particularly grateful to my supervisor, Prof. Theo Verbeek, for his detailed and invaluable comments on my drafts, and for his constant encouragement and generosity. I am also very much indebted to Erik-Jan Bos, who helped me find much unknown source material, helpfully commented on my manuscript in various stages, and, above all, was a wonderful roommate. I would like to thank my other roommate Mark Aalderink for being a great companion on the sometimes arduous and lonely road of doing a PhD. I am happy he agreed to be one of my paranymphs. I would also like to express my appreciation for the interest Fabrizio Baldassarri, visiting PhD student from the University of Parma, took in my research. The cheerful company of the other Utrecht PhD students in the history of philosophy and the student assistants also contributed to the fact that I look back on my years as a PhD student with pleasure and gratitude. Next, I would like to thank Luc Engen for kindly sending me an unknown article on Reneri. I also thank Christian Dury, who helped me in my search for the manuscript collection of Émile Gelin. Prof. Jan Roegiers was so kind to show me the way around the university library of Leuven; I was sorry to hear that he recently passed away. I am further indebted to Prof. Sven Dupré for enhancing my understanding of Reneri’s work in optics. Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to Arjen Dijkstra for his help with The Hartlib Papers CD- ROM. Furthermore, I have greatly benefited from participating in the Huizinga Institute in Amsterdam. Thanks for broadening my historical horizon and for making it possible to learn from other PhD students in the field. I would not have been able to finish my dissertation without the continuous support of my family and friends. I would like to mention some of them in particular: My dear friend and long-time flatmate Bram greatly encouraged me by taking a lively interest in my research subject and in my life as a PhD student. I am honoured he agreed to be my other paranymph. I am also thankful to my friend Arjan for the lavish hospitality I enjoyed in his Paris house while doing archival research in that city. Special thanks are due to my x ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS girlfriend Anne for her love and enduring patience. Finally, I would like to thank my mother, my brother Niels, and my stepfather Flip. I very much regret that my father does not live to see me graduating. This dissertation is dedicated to my mother and to the memory of my father.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Familytree.Jennifer M. Collins.Pdf
    /anuel Bryennios *heodore /etochites 5regory Pala)as 1315 131+ 131+ 9ilos ;a1asilas 'e)etrios ;ydones (lissaeus Judaeus 1363 1363 5eorgios Plethon 5e)istos /anuel .hrysoloras 1393 1333 5uarino da Verona 1408 1& , Vittorino da Feltre 1416 U. Padova 1&16 *heodoros 5a2es 1433 U. /antova 1&33 Basilios Bessarion 1436 /ystras 1&36 Johannes Argyropoulos 1444 U. Padova 1&&& 'e)etrios .halcocondyles Pietro 0occa1onella Pelope /ystras 1452 1&+2 9iccolo 6eoniceno 1453 U. Padova 1&+3 /arsilio Ficino 1462 U. Florence 1&62 Janus 6ascaris *ho)as von ;e)pen a ;e)pis U. Padova 1472 1&72 Alexander "egius Jaco1 1en Jehiel 6oans St. Agnes, $%olle 1474 1&7& Johannes Sto88ler .risto8oro 6andino U. <ngolstadt 1476 1&76 Angelo Poliziano 1477 U. Florence 1&77 0udol8 Agricola 5eorgius "er)onymus U. Ferrara 1478 1&7, Jacques 6e8evre d(taples 1480 U. Paris 1&, Johann 0euchlin 1481 U. Poitiers 1&,1 6eo ?uters 1485 U. 6ouvain 1&,+ Jan Standonck 1490 U. Paris 1&3 5uillau)e Bude 1491 U. Paris 1&31 Scipione Fortiguerra 1493 U. Florence 1&33 Ulrich $asius 1501 U. Frei1urg 1+ 1 'esiderius (rasmus /oses Pere2 U. *urin 1506 1+ 6 5irola)o Aleandro 1508 U. Padova 1+ , 0utger 0escius 1513 U. Paris 1+13 Philipp /elanchthon 1514 U. *u1ingen 1+1& *ho)as .ran)er /aarten van 'orp 1515 U. .a)1ridge U. 6ouvain 1+1+ 1+1+ Francois 'u1ois 1516 U. Paris 1+16 Andrea Alciati /atthaeus Adrianus U. Bologna 1518 1+1, Jaco1us 6ato)us Jan van .a)pen 1519 U. 6euven U.
    [Show full text]
  • The Dutch in the Early Modern World David Onnekink , Gijs Rommelse Frontmatter More Information
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-12581-0 — The Dutch in the Early Modern World David Onnekink , Gijs Rommelse Frontmatter More Information The Dutch in the Early Modern World Emerging at the turn of the seventeenth century, the Dutch Republic rose to become a powerhouse of economic growth, artistic creativity, military innovation, religious tolerance and intellectual development. This is the first textbook to present this period of early modern Dutch history in a global context. It makes an active use of illustrations, objects, personal stories and anecdotes to present a lively overview of Dutch global history that is solidly grounded in sources and literature. Focusing on themes that resonate with contemporary concerns, such as overseas exploration, war, slavery, migration, identity and racism, this volume charts the multiple ways in which the Dutch were connected with the outside world. It serves as an engaging and accessible intro- duction to Dutch history, as well as a case study in early modern global expansion. david onnekink is Assistant Professor in Early Modern International Relations at Utrecht University. He has previously held a position at Leiden University, and was a visiting professor at the College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA, and the University of California, Los Angeles. He has been a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities at Edinburgh (2004), Het Scheepvaartmuseum in Amsterdam (2016–2017) and the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (2016). He is the author of Reinterpreting the Dutch Forty Years War (2016), and edited volumes on War and Religion after Westphalia, 1648–1713 (2009) and Ideology and Foreign Policy in Early Modern Europe (1650–1750) (2011), also with Gijs Rommelse.
    [Show full text]
  • Verortungen Von Wissen Die Räume Und Sammlungen Der Universität Leiden 1575-1700
    Research Collection Doctoral Thesis Verortungen von Wissen Die Räume und Sammlungen der Universität Leiden 1575-1700 Author(s): Grämiger, Gregory Publication Date: 2014 Permanent Link: https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-a-010402159 Rights / License: In Copyright - Non-Commercial Use Permitted This page was generated automatically upon download from the ETH Zurich Research Collection. For more information please consult the Terms of use. ETH Library Gregory Grämiger VERORTUNGEN VON WISSEN Die Räume und Sammlungen der Universität Leiden 1575–1700 DISS ETH 22375 DISS ETH 22375 VERORTUNGEN VON WISSEN DIE RÄUME UND SAMMLUNGEN DER UNIVERSITÄT LEIDEN 1575–1700 Abhandlung zur Erlangung des Titels DOKTOR der ETH ZÜRICH vorgelegt von GREGORY GRÄMIGER Dipl. Arch. ETH geboren am 8. Februar 1980 von Mosnang SG Angenommen auf Antrag von PD Dr. Lothar Schmitt Prof. Dr. Eric Jorink Prof. Dr. Philip Ursprung 2014 Dank Auf der vorhergehenden Seite fehlt der Name von Andreas Tönnesmann, denn mein ver- ehrter Doktorvater konnte die letzte Niederschrift der Arbeit leider nicht mehr lesen. Ohne seine Initiative, Inspiration und stete Förderung wäre die vorliegende Arbeit nicht verfasst worden. Ihm gebührt mein erster und grösster Dank. Lothar Schmitt danke ich nicht nur für die Übernahme des Referats, sondern auch für die durchgehende Unterstützung während vieler Jahre der Forschung und Niederschrift. Eric Jorink danke ich für seine Expertise und für die Übernahme des Koreferats. Philip Ursprung half mit seinem Gutachten in Stunden der Not, wofür ich ihm meinen Dank aus- sprechen möchte. Bereichert wurde die Arbeit durch das Interesse und das Fachwissen von Susanne Rau, Anne Goldgar, Tim Huisman, Gerda van Uffelen, A.J.F.
    [Show full text]
  • HNA April 11 Cover-Final.Indd
    historians of netherlandish art NEWSLETTER AND REVIEW OF BOOKS Dedicated to the Study of Netherlandish, German and Franco-Flemish Art and Architecture, 1350-1750 Vol. 28, No. 1 April 2011 Jacob Cats (1741-1799), Summer Landscape, pen and brown ink and wash, 270-359 mm. Hamburger Kunsthalle. Photo: Christoph Irrgang Exhibited in “Bruegel, Rembrandt & Co. Niederländische Zeichnungen 1450-1850”, June 17 – September 11, 2011, on the occasion of the publication of Annemarie Stefes, Niederländische Zeichnungen 1450-1850, Kupferstichkabinett der Hamburger Kunsthalle (see under New Titles) HNA Newsletter, Vol. 23, No. 2, November 2006 1 historians of netherlandish art 23 S. Adelaide Avenue, Highland Park, NJ 08904 Telephone/Fax: (732) 937-8394 E-Mail: [email protected] www.hnanews.org Historians of Netherlandish Art Offi cers President - Stephanie Dickey (2009–2013) Bader Chair in Northern Baroque Art Queen’s University Kingston ON K7L 3N6 Canada Vice-President - Amy Golahny (2009–2013) Lycoming College Williamsport, PA 17701 Treasurer - Rebecca Brienen University of Miami Art & Art History Department PO Box 248106 Coral Gables FL 33124-2618 European Treasurer and Liaison - Fiona Healy Seminarstrasse 7 D-55127 Mainz Germany Board Members Contents Dagmar Eichberger (2008–2012) HNA News ............................................................................1 Wayne Franits (2009–2013) Matt Kavaler (2008–2012) Personalia ............................................................................... 2 Henry Luttikhuizen (2009 and 2010–2014) Exhibitions
    [Show full text]
  • Henryk Siemiradzki and the International Artistic Milieu
    ACCADEMIA POL ACCA DELLE SCIENZE DELLE SCIENZE POL ACCA ACCADEMIA BIBLIOTECA E CENTRO DI STUDI A ROMA E CENTRO BIBLIOTECA ACCADEMIA POLACCA DELLE SCIENZE BIBLIOTECA E CENTRO DI STUDI A ROMA CONFERENZE 145 HENRYK SIEMIRADZKI AND THE INTERNATIONAL ARTISTIC MILIEU FRANCESCO TOMMASINI, L’ITALIA E LA RINASCITA E LA RINASCITA L’ITALIA TOMMASINI, FRANCESCO IN ROME DELLA INDIPENDENTE POLONIA A CURA DI MARIA NITKA AGNIESZKA KLUCZEWSKA-WÓJCIK CONFERENZE 145 ACCADEMIA POLACCA DELLE SCIENZE BIBLIOTECA E CENTRO DI STUDI A ROMA ISSN 0239-8605 ROMA 2020 ISBN 978-83-956575-5-9 CONFERENZE 145 HENRYK SIEMIRADZKI AND THE INTERNATIONAL ARTISTIC MILIEU IN ROME ACCADEMIA POLACCA DELLE SCIENZE BIBLIOTECA E CENTRO DI STUDI A ROMA CONFERENZE 145 HENRYK SIEMIRADZKI AND THE INTERNATIONAL ARTISTIC MILIEU IN ROME A CURA DI MARIA NITKA AGNIESZKA KLUCZEWSKA-WÓJCIK. ROMA 2020 Pubblicato da AccademiaPolacca delle Scienze Bibliotecae Centro di Studi aRoma vicolo Doria, 2 (Palazzo Doria) 00187 Roma tel. +39 066792170 e-mail: [email protected] www.rzym.pan.pl Il convegno ideato dal Polish Institute of World Art Studies (Polski Instytut Studiów nad Sztuką Świata) nell’ambito del programma del Ministero della Scienza e dell’Istruzione Superiore della Repubblica di Polonia (Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education) “Narodowy Program Rozwoju Humanistyki” (National Programme for the Develop- ment of Humanities) - “Henryk Siemiradzki: Catalogue Raisonné of the Paintings” (“Tradition 1 a”, no. 0504/ nprh4/h1a/83/2015). Il convegno è stato organizzato con il supporto ed il contributo del National Institute of Polish Cultural Heritage POLONIKA (Narodowy Instytut Polskiego Dziedzictwa Kul- turowego za Granicą POLONIKA). Redazione: Maria Nitka, Agnieszka Kluczewska-Wójcik Recensione: Prof.
    [Show full text]
  • Not a Covenant of Works in Disguise” (Herman Bavinck1): the Place of the Mosaic Covenant in Redemptive History
    MAJT 24 (2013): 143-177 “NOT A COVENANT OF WORKS IN DISGUISE” (HERMAN BAVINCK1): THE PLACE OF THE MOSAIC COVENANT IN REDEMPTIVE HISTORY by Robert Letham READERS WILL DOUBTLESS be aware of the argument that the Mosaic covenant is in some way a republication of the covenant of works made by God with Adam before the fall. In recent years, this has been strongly advocated by Meredith Kline and others influenced by his views. In this article I will ask some historical and theological questions of the claim. I will also consider how far Reformed theology, particularly in the period up to the production of the major confessional documents of the Westminster Assembly (1643-47), was of one mind on the question. 2 I will concentrate on the argument itself, without undue reference to persons.3 1. Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, Volume 3: Sin and Salvation in Christ (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006), 222. 2. Apart from the works of Kline, cited below, others have addressed the matter in some detail - Mark W. Karlberg, “The Search for an Evangelical Consensus on Paul and the Law,” JETS 40 (1997): 563–79; Mark W. Karlberg, “Recovering the Mosaic Covenant as Law and Gospel: J. Mark Beach, John H. Sailhammer, and Jason C. Meyer as Representative Expositors,” EQ 83, no. 3 (2011): 233–50; D. Patrick Ramsey, “In Defense of Moses: A Confessional Critique of Kline and Karlberg,” WTJ 66 (2004): 373–400; Brenton C. Ferry, “Cross-Examining Moses’ Defense: An Answer to Ramsey’s Critique of Kline and Karlberg,” WTJ 67 (2005): 163–68; J.
    [Show full text]
  • University of Groningen Developments in Structuring Of
    University of Groningen Developments in Structuring of Reformed Theology van den Belt, Hendrik Published in: Reformation und Rationalität IMPORTANT NOTE: You are advised to consult the publisher's version (publisher's PDF) if you wish to cite from it. Please check the document version below. Document Version Final author's version (accepted by publisher, after peer review) Publication date: 2015 Link to publication in University of Groningen/UMCG research database Citation for published version (APA): van den Belt, H. (2015). Developments in Structuring of Reformed Theology: The Synopsis Purioris Theologiae (1625) as Example. In H. J. Selderhuis, & E-J. Waschke (Eds.), Reformation und Rationalität (pp. 289-311). (Refo500 Academic Studies; Vol. 17). Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. Copyright Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Take-down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Downloaded from the University of Groningen/UMCG research database (Pure): http://www.rug.nl/research/portal. For technical reasons the number of authors shown on this cover page is limited to 10 maximum. Download date: 11-02-2018 1 Henk van den Belt 2 3 4 Developments in Structuring of Reformed Theology: 5 6 The Synopsis Purioris Theologiae (1625) as Example. 7 8 9 10 11 12 Abstract 13 14 The Synopsis Purioris Theologiae (1625), an influential handbook of Reformed 15 dogmatics, began as a cycle of disputations.
    [Show full text]
  • Evangelische Theologische Faculteit, Leuven ISAAC BEECKMAN
    Evangelische Theologische Faculteit, Leuven ISAAC BEECKMAN (1588-1637) AND THE RISE OF MODERN SCIENCE: AN EXPLORATION OF BEECKMAN’S THEOLOGICAL THOUGHT IN THE CONTEXT OF HIS MECHANICAL PHILOSOPHY A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Theology and Religious Studies in the Department of Historical Theology Advisors: Prof. Dr. Antoon Vos and Drs. Matthias Mangold by Ben Van Acker Leuven, Belgium July 2019 CONTENTS PREFACE ............................................................................................................................................ V ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................................... VII INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 1 The Discovery of Beeckman’s Journal 1 Religion and the Rise of Modern Science 4 Science from the Perspective of University Thought 5 Methodology 7 CHAPTER 1. BEECKMAN’S LIFE, FAITH AND EDUCATION ............................................................. 10 Introduction 10 The Birth of a Craftsman, Theologian and Natural Philosopher 10 The Christian Faith of a Natural Scientist 17 Beeckman’s Academic Training 26 Theology in the Time of Early and High Orthodoxy 31 Summary 36 CHAPTER 2. GOD’S BOOK OF NATURE AND ITS MECHANICAL WORKING ................................. 38 Introduction 38 The Author, the Book of Nature and Its Readers
    [Show full text]
  • THE INVENTION of ATOMIST ICONOGRAPHY 1. Introductory
    THE INVENTION OF ATOMIST ICONOGRAPHY Christoph Lüthy Center for Medieval and Renaissance Natural Philosophy University of Nijmegen1 1. Introductory Puzzlement For centuries now, particles of matter have invariably been depicted as globules. These glob- ules, representing very different entities of distant orders of magnitudes, have in turn be used as pictorial building blocks for a host of more complex structures such as atomic nuclei, mole- cules, crystals, gases, material surfaces, electrical currents or the double helixes of DNA. May- be it is because of the unsurpassable simplicity of the spherical form that the ubiquity of this type of representation appears to us so deceitfully self-explanatory. But in truth, the spherical shape of these various units of matter deserves nothing if not raised eyebrows. Fig. 1a: Giordano Bruno: De triplici minimo et mensura, Frankfurt, 1591. 1 Research for this contribution was made possible by a fellowship at the Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschafts- geschichte (Berlin) and by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO), grant 200-22-295. This article is based on a 1997 lecture. Christoph Lüthy Fig. 1b: Robert Hooke, Micrographia, London, 1665. Fig. 1c: Christian Huygens: Traité de la lumière, Leyden, 1690. Fig. 1d: William Wollaston: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 1813. Fig. 1: How many theories can be illustrated by a single image? How is it to be explained that the same type of illustrations should have survived unperturbed the most profound conceptual changes in matter theory? One needn’t agree with the Kuhnian notion that revolutionary breaks dissect the conceptual evolution of science into incommensu- rable segments to feel that there is something puzzling about pictures that are capable of illus- 2 THE INVENTION OF ATOMIST ICONOGRAPHY trating diverging “world views” over a four-hundred year period.2 For the matter theories illustrated by the nearly identical images of fig.
    [Show full text]
  • 196179395.Pdf
    University of Groningen Intergenerational transmission of occupational status before modernization Marchand, Wouter IMPORTANT NOTE: You are advised to consult the publisher's version (publisher's PDF) if you wish to cite from it. Please check the document version below. Document Version Other version Publication date: 2016 Link to publication in University of Groningen/UMCG research database Citation for published version (APA): Marchand, W. (2016). Intergenerational transmission of occupational status before modernization: the case of reformed preachers in Friesland, 1700-1800. 1-21. Paper presented at 11th European Social Science and History Conference, Valencia, Spain. Copyright Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Take-down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Downloaded from the University of Groningen/UMCG research database (Pure): http://www.rug.nl/research/portal. For technical reasons the number of authors shown on this cover page is limited to 10 maximum. Download date: 29-04-2019 Wouter Marchand & Jacobus Teitsma Joha Intergenerational transmission of occupational status before modernization: the case of reformed preachers in Friesland, 1700-1800. THIS IS A DRAFT VERSION – DO NOT CITE European Social Science History Conference, Valencia April 2, 2016 Corresponding author: Dr. Wouter Marchand Junior Assistant Professor Dept. of History and Art History Research group Economic and Social History Utrecht University [email protected] Marchand & Joha ESSHC 2016 1.
    [Show full text]
  • The Radziwiłł Cousins, Prophecies and False News in Mid-Seventeenth-Century Europe
    137 WSCHODNI ROCZNIK HUMANISTYCZNY TOM XVII (2020), No 3 s. 137-154 doi: 10.36121/hmazheika.17.2020.3.137 Hanna Mazheika (National Historical Archives of Belarus) ORCID 0000-0001-8989-6875 The Radziwiłł Cousins, Prophecies and False News in Mid-Seventeenth-Century Europe Annotation: The article looks at how false prophecies and misinformation helped to enhance the image of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania as a Protestant state in contradistinction to the Kingdom of Poland, the identity of which was clearly Catholic. The 1650s was the time when the influence of the prophetic imposter Mikuláš Drabík and his visions became particularly pronounced. Moreover, fake news about the destruction of all Polish and Lithuanian Protestant churches found a targeted audience and seemed to have worked as a propagandistic device. This discourse regarding the reasons for the downfall of the Protestant churches in Poland- Lithuania fostered among western Europeans an interest in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and gave Janusz and Bogusław Radziwiłł an international reputation of saviours of the true faith, while at home they were vilified as traitors. Keywords: Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Radziwills, Protestantism, Catholicism, prophecy, 17th century. Братья Радзивиллы, пророчества и фальшивые новости в Европе в середине XVII в. Аннотация: В статье рассматривается, как пророчества и дезинформация помогли укрепить имидж Великого Княжества Литовского как протестантского государства на международной арене в отличие от Королевства Польского, конфессиональная идентичность которого была несомненно католической. 1650-е годы – период, когда «пророчества» Микулаша Драбика стали особенно популярны. Более того, фальшивые новости об уничтожении всех польских и литовских протестантских церквей нашли свою целевую аудиторию и, казалось, работали как удачная пропагандистская уловка.
    [Show full text]
  • Robert Kennedy, Rutgers College 1942
    RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY NEW BRUNSWICK AN INTERVIEW WITH ROBERT KENNEDY FOR THE RUTGERS ORAL HISTORY ARCHIVES OF WORLD WAR II INTERVIEWED BY G. KURT PIEHLER NEW BRUNSWICK, NEW JERSEY JULY 14, 1994 TRANSCRIPT BY ROBERT LIPSCHITZ and LINDA E. LASKO and G. KURT PIEHLER Kurt Piehler: This is an interview with Bob Kennedy on July 14, 1994 with Kurt Piehler. I guess I would like to begin by talking about your parents and ... the first question I have ... [has to do with your] father's job with the telephone companies. It seems to have been influential in your life. How did he end up with New York Telephone or its predecessor? Bob Kennedy: I really don't know. The only thing I know is that it seemed to me that ever since I was a very small boy we were a telephone family. He worked over there in New York every day, and it seemed like that was the thing you should do. KP: Work for the telephone company? BK: That's right. KP: Did other members of the family, uncles or cousins, work for the phone company? BK: No. KP: But your father worked consistently? BK: Yes, he was there. KP: Did he work through the Great Depression? BK: Yes. He worked through that whole time, you know part-time they had ... KP: So he had reduced hours during the Great Depression? BK: Yes, that's right. That's the way they did it. KP: Did your father's working for the telephone company influence your career direction? BK: Yes, very much so.
    [Show full text]