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Conclusion

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 September 2009

Jacqueline Broad
Affiliation:
Monash University, Victoria
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Summary

There is a prevailing opinion that women philosophers of the seventeenth century were positively inspired by the new Cartesian conception of reason. But the writings of a number of early modern women show that a reverence for reason and dualist theories of the soul and body do not necessarily go hand in hand. Profoundly influenced by the Cambridge Platonists, these women are critical of Cartesian metaphysics and the theories it influenced, such as occasionalism, and pre-established harmony. In the 1640s, Elisabeth of Bohemia challenges Descartes' account of soul–body interaction, and develops a more extensive definition of the soul and the soul–body relationship. Following in her footsteps, Margaret Cavendish and Anne Conway are opposed to the real distinction between soul and body; to the view that the soul is unextended, indivisible, and penetrable, and that material things lack life, self-motion, and perception. Although Conway's cosmology is commonly labelled as ‘spiritualist’, her system is not much different from Cavendish's ‘materialist’ philosophy. Both Conway and Cavendish defy typical seventeenth-century classifications by ascribing material attributes to spirit, and spiritual properties to matter. Mary Astell and Damaris Masham oppose the view that there is no genuine interaction between the soul and body. Despite their philosophical differences, they criticise the occasionalist philosophy of John Norris because it makes material things superfluous features of God's creation.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2003

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  • Conclusion
  • Jacqueline Broad, Monash University, Victoria
  • Book: Women Philosophers of the Seventeenth Century
  • Online publication: 22 September 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511487125.008
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  • Conclusion
  • Jacqueline Broad, Monash University, Victoria
  • Book: Women Philosophers of the Seventeenth Century
  • Online publication: 22 September 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511487125.008
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Conclusion
  • Jacqueline Broad, Monash University, Victoria
  • Book: Women Philosophers of the Seventeenth Century
  • Online publication: 22 September 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511487125.008
Available formats
×