Margaret Cavendish: Observations upon Experimental Philosophy (Cambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy) [Paperback]

Margaret Cavendish (Author), Eileen O'Neill (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521776759 | ISBN-13: 978-0521776752 | Publication Date: November 19, 2001

Margaret Cavendish's Observations upon Experimental Philosophy holds a unique position in early modern philosophy. Cavendish rejects the picture of nature as a grand machine that was propounded by Hobbes and Descartes; she also rejects the alternative views of nature that make reference to immaterial spirits. Instead she develops an original system of organicist materialism, and draws on the doctrines of ancient Stoicism to attack the tenets of seventeenth-century mechanical philosophy. Her treatise is a document of major importance in the history of women's contributions to philosophy and science.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Eileen O'Neill's edition of the 1668 edition of this text (the first was printed in 1666) will go a long way to making Cavendish accessible to a modern audience. O'Neill's edition of the Observations is textually impeccable." Isis

"This is a significant, and welcome addition to scholarship." Philosophy in Review

Book Description

Margaret Cavendish's Observations upon Experimental Philosophy holds a unique position in early modern philosophy. Cavendish rejects the picture of nature as a grand machine that was propounded by Hobbes and Descartes; she also rejects the alternative views of nature that make reference to immaterial spirits. Instead she develops an original system of organicist materialism, and draws on the doctrines of ancient Stoicism to attack the tenets of seventeenth-century mechanical philosophy. Her treatise is a document of major importance in the history of women's contributions to philosophy and science.

Product Details

• Paperback: 338 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (November 19, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521776759
• ISBN-13: 978-0521776752
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #743,201 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For Modern Philosophy Afficianados Only!, June 27, 2004

By 

Katherine Katsenis (Torrance, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Margaret Cavendish: Observations upon Experimental Philosophy (Cambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy) (Hardcover)

Eileen O'Neill's annotated, unabridged edition of Margaret Cavendish's Observations on Experimental Philosophy, (part of the Cambridge Texts in the History of Philosophy Series), is a solid contribution to the history of metaphysics. It has not appeared in print since its second edition in 1668. While considerable work on Cavendish as a literary writer, e.g. her letters, poems and plays, has been done in recent years, less has been done on her work in metaphysics. O'Neill's labors will undoubtedly change this fact. This modern edition makes this work accessible to scholars in the history of philosophy and philosophy of science. It offers critical annotations which situate and clarify this work for the modern scholar, although it may be the case that not enough is said about Cavendish's reliance upon the Scholastics. However, O'Neill does a more than respectable job cross-referencing Cavendish's philosophical arguments with classic specialists of the period in philosophy of science. Readers can look forward to a helpful bibliography as well.


O'Neill's 26 page introduction details Cavendish's political and social environment so that not only her philosophical contributions are reconstituted, but also the historical circumstances surrounding them. Cavendish represents one of many female writers in the mid-seventeenth century, but is the only one to publish works in philosophy under her own name. Thus Cavendish is an important figure on several fronts. Philosophically she outlines a system of natural philosophy, which rejects Aristotle, Hobbes and Descartes. Religiously, she proposes an atheistic system of nature and politically, she calls for a platform which includes women as cognitive, rational contributors to the problems of science and philosophy. This edition of Observations will appeal to all respective disciplines.


The strength of O'Neill's introduction is her discussion of the Stoic influences on Cavendish. O'Neill has done her research to this end. While her brief overview assumes a learned fluency with this era of philosophy, and remains silent about many aspects of the Observations it can still be useful for the disciplined novice. O'Neill is able to delineate how Cavendish's materialist system of nature, with its reliance upon animate, self-moving, non-divisible bodies harkens back to Stoicism. Further, she previews concepts which mature in Cavendish's writings and carry less resemblance to Stocism such as her bifurcation of the Stoics "active principle" into the "sensitive" and the "rational". The introduction also cashes out Cavendish's primary objections to Epicurean Atomism, and her reservations regarding a mechanistic account of natural change. O'Neill takes great care with this latter issue and sets out Cavendish's main arguments. If the introductory essay lacks for anything, it is a discussion about the scholastic influences on Cavendish. The format of the Obervations is clearly reminiscent of Aquinas' Summa, with the problem-response-objection-counter response style, yet no real mention of this fact is made. However, O'Neill does not ignore this issue as is illustrated in the several footnotes which allude to the Schoolmen.


O'Neill offers good footnotes with references to figures such as Hobbes, Boyle, Aristotle, Power, Bacon, Descartes and Hooke. Often, the references are to lesser known works by these authors. Thus, it is clear that serious Cavendish scholars will need to be especially familiar with these works. In this regard, O'Neill tends to offer more detailed and frequent annotations in the sections of Cavendish's work which consider issues in early modern philosophy of science and Atomism, than she does in the considerable section Cavendish spends on the issue of the problem of perception. There is no question that this well researched, documented and annotated edition will allow the labors of Cavendish to be revisited and her voice to once again be heard.