De Corpore

Synopsis

De Corpore ("On the Body") is a 1655 book by the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes. As its full Latin title Elementorum philosophiae sectio prima De corpore implies, it was part of a larger work, conceived as a trilogy. De Cive had already appeared, while De Homine would be published in 1658. Hobbes had in fact been drafting De Corpore for at least ten years before its appearance, putting it aside for other matters. This delay affected its reception: the approach taken seemed much less innovative than it would have done in the previous decade. The first part covers logic, while the second covers various scientific concepts. The third part covers primarily geometry, with a number of chapters devoted to mathematics and kinematics. The fourth part covers physics. In 1656, Hobbes himself supervised the first English translation of the work. A planned French translation was never completed.

Text license: CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

Details

Type

Book

Release date

January 1, 1655

Created by

Thomas Hobbes