Preface

Summary

In this volume we have brought together more than a dozen new studies about the Dutch natural philosopher Isaac Beeckman (1588-1637). Today, his important role in the initial stages of the Scientific Revolution of the seventeenth century is contested by no one, if only because of his decisive influence on the young René Descartes. Yet, the origins of Beeckman's innovative ideas about the constitution of the natural world and the mechanisms that lay behind natural phenomena deserve more historical investigation. Also, the social and cultural context in which he operated and which partly shaped his ideas and practices awaits further scrutiny. Moreover, his notebook and his particular way of philosophizing shed new light on the cultures of knowledge in the early seventeenth century, especially in the Dutch Republic. By exploring all these different issues, by extending the research into areas that were previously underexplored, and by re-thinking categories of thought that have been taken for granted for too long, we hope that this volume will contribute to a better and richer understanding of the early modern history of knowledge.