William Petty on the order of nature : an unpublished manuscript treatise / Rhodri Lewis.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lewis, Rhodri, 1976-

Series:

Medieval & Renaissance Texts & Studies (Series) ; v. 399.

Medieval & Renaissance Texts & Studies (Series)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Petty, William, Sir, 1623-1687. Of the scale of creatures.

Petty, William.

Nature--Religious aspects--Christianity.

Nature.

Chain of being (Philosophy).

Physical Description:

xiii, 176 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Tempe, Ariz. : ACMRS (Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies), 2012.

Summary:

The son of a clothier, Petty (1623-87) became one of the richest and most scientifically learned people in Britain, and his life and work have long interested scholars of economics, politics, science, education, and Ireland, says Lewis (English, U. of Oxford), but his unpublished papers and correspondence were in the hands of his family until the British Library bought them in 1993. Scholarship has blossomed since then. In his 1677 treatise On the Scale of Creature he sought to refute charges that he was an atheist, but it was never published. Here is a critical edition with the original spelling, supported by a substantial introduction and commentary. The publisher is the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Contents:

I General Introduction

1 The Discourse: Petty's Atomism and its Critics 1

2 Scribal Culture and the Origins of Petty's Scale 10

3 The Scala Naturae and Petty's Scale 22

4 Genre, Natural Philosophy, and Religious Apologetics 28

5 The Rejection of Natural Theology and the Influence of Hobbes 31

6 Humankind and the Animals 43

7 Hierarchy, "Race," and Human Diversity 54

8 Concluding Remarks: the Scala Naturae, Ignorance, and Civic Virtue 71

II Textual Introduction

1 The Manuscripts 83

2 Editorial Principles 84

3 The Text 90

III Of the Scale of Creatures: Critical Edition and Commentary

Prefatory epistle 93

Chapter 1 100

Chapter 2 103

Chapter 3 108

Chapter 4 112

Chapter 5 116.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contains:

Petty, William, Sir, 1623-1687. Of the scale of creatures.

ISBN:

9780866984478

086698447X

OCLC:

757133487