Descartes, The Traité de l'homme, and the Cartesianizing of Dutch Medicine

Although the importance of Descartes' work for the development of physical science in the pre-Newtonian period has been extensively explored in the literature, the impact of his work on the medical and biomedical sciences has not been examined in the same detail. This has been in spite of the explicit and repeated statements by Descartes that the establishment of a new medicine, built systematically upon his physics, formed a fundamental aim of his whole philosophical project. Acceptance of this medical dimension of Descartes' program requires the re-examination of several issues in our understanding of the genesis, reception, and historical influence of Cartesianism. For beginning with Descartes himself, but extending through the work of Cartesian physicians such as Henricus Regius, Louis de la Forge, and Theodoor Craanen, Cartesianism became a dynamic program for a revolutionary form of biomedical inquiry, one that promised a new research program in the life sciences that would attract enthusiastic followers and ardent critics throughout Europe. This session draws together an international group of scholars who have been directly concerned with these dimensions of Cartesianism. These contributions will explore the background, elaboration, traditional and innovative elements of medical Cartesianism, as well as its evolving public expression, with particular focus on the issues surrounding the production and influence of the posthumous Traité de l'homme and Descartes' other medical works. This session also highlights the interactions of the history of science, medicine and philosophy, and the importance of lesser-known figures in the construction of early modern science and philosophy.