Isaac Newton Criticism
The critical exploration of Isaac Newton's life and work reveals a multifaceted legacy that has significantly impacted both scientific and philosophical landscapes. Newton's path was shaped by a Puritan upbringing and the upheaval of post-revolutionary England, conditions that informed his scientific and theological endeavors. His career, largely centered at Cambridge, was marked by early achievements in calculus, optics, and mechanics, driven by a period of intense productivity during the university's plague-induced closure. Newton's intellectual journey is encapsulated in his major works, such as Opticks and the seminal Principia, which laid the groundwork for Enlightenment thought and modern science, as analyzed in Newton and the Scientific Revolution.
Newton's personal life and temperament played a significant role in his scientific output. His reclusive nature and sensitivity to criticism often led to delayed publications, inciting disputes with contemporaries such as Robert Hooke and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. However, his reclusiveness also allowed him the solitude to delve into theological and alchemical studies, as discussed in Newton and Alchemy. These lesser-known pursuits were not mere diversions but integral to his quest to understand the universe, reflecting a synthesis of scientific and divine inquiry as noted by Bernard Cohen.
While Newtonian science laid the foundation for future scientific advancements, it also met with criticism from literary figures like William Blake and William Wordsworth, who found his mechanical universe lacking in spiritual depth. Nonetheless, Newton's vision of a cosmos actively maintained by God, as illuminated in his posthumous theological works, continues to captivate scholars, as explored by Robert Markley. His efforts to reconcile scientific innovation with theological principles are further examined in Dobbs and Jacob.
Newton's integration of alchemical manuscripts and theological writings, ongoing subjects of scholarly interest, provide a richer understanding of his comprehensive worldview. Despite initial skepticism and slow acceptance of his ideas outside England, his scientific legacy remains influential. As highlighted in Chapter XXIV and God and the Calling of the New Philosophy, modern scholarship continues to unveil the depth of Newton's contributions, cementing his status as a pivotal figure in the history of science and thought.
Contents
- Principal Works
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Newton, Isaac (Vol. 35)
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Chapter XXIV
(summary)
In the excerpt below, Brewster comments in detail on Newton's religious writings, asserting that "if Sir Isaac Newton had not been distinguished as a mathematician and a natural philosopher, he would have enjoyed a high reputation as a theologian."
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God and the Calling of the New Philosophy
(summary)
In the following essay, Manuel examines the relationship between religion and science in seventeenth-century England, focusing on the psychological underpinnings of Newton's theology.
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Newton and Alchemy
(summary)
In the essay below, originally delivered as a lecture in 1982, Westfall discusses the proper weight critics should give to the influence of alchemy on Newton's scientific thought, specifically in his work on the concept of force in the natural world.
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Force, Electricity, and the Powers of Living Matter in Newton's Mature Philosophy of Nature
(summary)
In the essay below, Home focuses on the concept of force as a component in Newton's theories of natural phenomena.
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Newton and the Scientific Revolution
(summary)
Below, Westfall discusses Newton's role in the seventeenth-century world of science, noting that "the Principia was … a synthesis of the major themes of the scientific revolution."
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Isaac Newton's Theological Writings: Problems and Prospects
(summary)
In the essay below, Markley surveys current scholarship on Newton's theology and notes that critics have used new approaches to his manuscripts to establish the proper relationship between Newton's spiritual inquiries and his scientific work.
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The Principia: Composition and Content
(summary)
Below, Dobbs and Jacob briefly outline the origin and content of Newton's Principia.
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Chapter XXIV
(summary)
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Newton, Isaac (Vol. 53)
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Newton and His Society
(summary)
In the following essay, Hill reviews the social and personal influences on Newton's life and work, suggesting that the most potent influences were Newton's Puritan upbringing and the post-revolutionary society in which he lived.
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The Thrice-Revealed Newton
(summary)
In the following, which was first delivered as a lecture in 1981, Cohen shows how Newton's interests and works have been revealed in three stages: in the material Newton himself chose to publish; in the manuscripts that were discovered and published after his death; and in the remaining manuscripts, correspondence, notebooks, and annotated texts that were sold at auction in 1936 by Newton's family. Furthermore, Cohen discusses the relevance of such findings, arguing that they demonstrate, among other things, the importance of Descartes' work in the development of Newton's own thought.
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Reading Locke and Newton as Literature
(summary)
In the following essay, Wilson argues that such literary topics as narration, point of view, diction, image patterns, and 'creative myth making or imaginative range' may be found in the works of both Locke and Newton. Wilson explores Newton's use of first-person narration, the settings and props used in discussion of experiments, and the use of negative interrogative syntax.
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Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Dobbs and Jacob survey Newton's life and works, highlighting Newton's primary beliefs, influences, and discoveries up to his writing of the Principia.
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Newton and His Society
(summary)
- Further Reading