‘Two Opposite Things Placed Near Each Other, are the Better Discerned’: Philosophical Readings of Cavendish's Literary Output

Santana, Carlos

doi:10.1080/09608788.2014.1002073

Cited by 1 publication

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“…Although she first renounced atomism in her 1663 edition of Philosophical and Physical Opinions , she nonetheless provides readers of Philosophical Letters (1664) with poetry from her “Book of Poems” which “contain[…] the ground of my opinion of Atomes” ( Philosophical Letters , p. 455). Carlos Santana sees Cavendish as an “exemplar for how to approach other works of philosophical literature, especially those currently neglected by philosophers” (Santana, 2015, p. 298). We suggest Berkeley belongs to this tradition of philosophical literature as well.…”

Section: Berkeley's Attitudes Towards Womenmentioning

confidence: 99%

Berkeley's Gland Tour into Speculative Fiction Part 2: Margaret Cavendish and Berkeley's Attitudes Towards Women

Moriarty

Walters

2023

Philosophy Compass

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In Part 1, we explored how Berkeley drew from Homeric literature and used literary techniques such as satire to challenge his "freethinking" philosophical opponents in "The Pineal Gland" story published in The Guardian in 1713. Echoing the grand tours Berkeley undertook in subsequent years, Part 1 and 2 both present a "gland tour" of some motivations, influences and legacies of Berkeley's text. In particular, Part 2, explores a line of literary influence beginning with Margaret Cavendish and extending through Gabriel Daniel, Berkeley and Alexander Pope. In doing so, we present anticipations of features of Berkeley's story in the writings of Margaret Cavendish amid a discussion of Berkeley's complex attitudes towards women. The paper also argues that Berkeley's story represents an underappreciated yet significant milestone in the history of speculative fiction.

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Section: Berkeley's Attitudes Towards Womenmentioning

confidence: 99%