After reconstructing some fetures of the Scholastic treatment of contingency in natural philosophy, this paper draws a comparison between Descartes’ treatments of the issue of the laws of nature in Le Monde (1629-1633) and in the Principles of Philosophy (1644). On the basis of this comparison, it argues that elements of the Scholastic understanding of contingency as due to the impediment provided by matter are still present in the former. While in the Principles Descartes appears to equate contingency with an epistemological limitation in our understanding of the complexity of natural phenomena, in the conclusion I argue that some elements of his previous approach to the issue remains in his treatment of curvilinear motion.
Autori: | Rodolfo Garau (Corresponding) | |
Data di pubblicazione: | 2019 | |
Titolo: | Descartes’ Physics in Le Monde and the Late-Scholastic Idea of Contingency | |
Titolo del libro: | Contingency and Natural Order in Early Modern Science | |
Appare nelle tipologie: | 3.1 Articolo su libro |
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Descartesì Physics in Le Monde...Contingency.docx | Documento in Pre-print | Accesso gratuito (solo visione) | Open Access dal 16/09/2022 | |
page from Contingency-and-natural-order-in-early-modern-science[Omodeo_Garau_2019]pdf.pdf | Versione stampata dell'articolo | Versione dell'editore | Accesso chiuso-personale | Riservato |