Notes on an unpublished work of Thomas Hobbes

Abstract

A study of the papers of Sir Charles Cavendish (1591-1654), the amateur of science, led me to the discovery of notes on an early version of Hobbes’ De corpore . These notes were written in 1645, ten years before the publication of the book. They indicate that several chapters, or fragments of chapters, already existed in their final form. They also contain large extracts of chapters which were later considerably recast. These notes are useful as, until now, we knew very little about the way D.e corpore had been composed, apart from the fact that Hobbes had worked on it between 1642 and 1646 and then, at intervals, until its publication in 1655. There exists, however, a far more important document on the development of Hobbes’ natural philosophy which, until recently, has passed unnoticed. Mr Cornelis de Waard, the historian of science and editor of Mersenne’s correspondence, made the discovery and was kind enough to draw my attention to it. He told me that he could not spend any time on its study or its publication but would be glad to see me undertake the work. I received similar encouragment from Mr Gaston Bachelard, director of the Institut d’Histoire des Sciences (Paris).