⋙ PDF Free The Philosopher the Priest and the Painter A Portrait of Descartes Steven Nadler 9780691157306 Books

The Philosopher the Priest and the Painter A Portrait of Descartes Steven Nadler 9780691157306 Books

Download As PDF : The Philosopher the Priest and the Painter A Portrait of Descartes Steven Nadler 9780691157306 Books

The Philosopher the Priest and the Painter A Portrait of Descartes Steven Nadler 9780691157306 Books

This book is an example of what I call, for lack of a better term, `popularized intellectual history' where the author takes some interesting historical event or puzzle and uses it to provide a non-technical introduction to a particular thinker. (Other examples of this type of work are Matthew Stewart's The Courtier and the Heretic: Leibniz, Spinoza, and the Fate of God in the Modern World which is about whether Leibniz and Spinoza ever met and James R Gaines' Evening in the Palace of Reason: Bach Meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment about Bach meeting Frederick the Great.)

Steven Nadler, here, takes a look at the often used depiction of the French philosopher Descartes that hangs in Louvre and examines whether the portrait is by the painter it is usually attributed to or whether it is actually a copy of an earlier formal portrait. Along the way he reviews early Dutch culture and politics, explains why Descartes ended up living in the Netherlands, and the importance of portraiture during this period. He also provides an introduction to Descartes' thought during this period and the reactions of various friends and critics. The analysis of Descartes' writings are presented in a historical fashion.

I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in a non-technical introduction to Descartes as well as anyone interested in the general milieu and painting history of the early Dutch Enlightenment. Readers well acquainted with Descartes looking for any new philosophical insight into his work should look elsewhere. Notes, bibliography, and index all first rate. In addition, several color plates as well as black and white figures. I gave this a 4 rating because the narrative was somewhat choppy, realizing however the difficulty of combining art history and philosophy in a single small book.


Tags : The Philosopher, the Priest, and the Painter: A Portrait of Descartes [Steven Nadler] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. In the Louvre museum hangs a portrait that is considered the iconic image of René Descartes, the great seventeenth-century French philosopher. And the painter of the work? The Dutch master Frans Hals--or so it was long believed,Steven Nadler,The Philosopher, the Priest, and the Painter: A Portrait of Descartes,Princeton University Press,0691157308,History & Surveys - Modern,Religious,Netherlands,Descartes, Renae,Europe - Intellectual life - 17th century,Europe;Intellectual life;17th century.,Philosophers - France,Philosophers;France;Biography.,Philosophy, Modern,Philosophy, Modern.,ART History Baroque & Rococo,ArtHistory - Baroque & Rococo,Artists, Architects, Photographers,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Artists, Architects, Photographers,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Philosophers,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Religious,Biography,Biography & Autobiography,Biography & AutobiographyPhilosophers,Biography & AutobiographyReligious,Biography Autobiography,BiographyAutobiography,Biography: arts & entertainment,Biography: historical, political & military,Biography: religious & spiritual,France,General Adult,History,History - Baroque & Rococo,History of Western philosophy,History of art art & design styles,Netherlands,Non-Fiction,PHILOSOPHY History & Surveys Modern,Philosophers,Philosophers - France,Philosophers;France;Biography.,Philosophy,Philosophy, Modern,Philosophy, Modern.,PhilosophyHistory & Surveys - Modern,Religious,UNIVERSITY PRESS,United States,Western Europe,c 1600 to c 1700,ART History Baroque & Rococo,ArtHistory - Baroque & Rococo,Artists, Architects, Photographers,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Artists, Architects, Photographers,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Philosophers,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Religious,Biography & AutobiographyPhilosophers,Biography & AutobiographyReligious,History - Baroque & Rococo,PHILOSOPHY History & Surveys Modern,Philosophers,PhilosophyHistory & Surveys - Modern,Biography Autobiography,Biography,France,Biography & Autobiography,BiographyAutobiography,c 1600 to c 1700,Biography: arts & entertainment,Biography: historical, political & military,Biography: religious & spiritual,History of Western philosophy,History of art art & design styles,Philosophy

The Philosopher the Priest and the Painter A Portrait of Descartes Steven Nadler 9780691157306 Books Reviews

I liked this book but some of it was a bit dryball. I was convinced, however, that old Frans Hals was a chronic drunk after reading Nadler's book. Also, if you haven't looked at a philosophy text since college (like me), the book is a very good refresher on the philosophy of Descartes. He should never have gone to Sweden.
The book is informative on some aspects of life in the Netherlands in the 17th century, but it is not a history book, neither a philosophy book, and therefore not satisfying on both counts.
I must admit I am a bit tired to the biographies of Descartes that offer nothing new and are basically just copies of the earlier biographies. I don't really like books, that are structured around the "Cogito, ergo sum". Those kind of books have already been printed too many times.

This book is different, in fact it is not an ordinary biography at all. In addition to the normal investigations concerning Descartes's natural science, metaphysics and mathematics, this offers a lot of information about the art history, religious, economical and political movements in 17th century Holland, publishing policy in Europe and other interesting stuff. As fas as I can see all the traditional myths and misunderstandings concerning Descartes are avoided.

This book is easy to read and do not require any knowledge about the subject, but the rare publications and letters from Descartes are used often, which is good for the advanced reader.

The real page numbers are great, because you can't really refer to the E-book properly if these are missing. A great way to combine scientific reading and an adventure novel. I would love to read more this kind of books.
This is a good idea that didn't quite work out well enough. I'm fascinated by historical narratives that weave different types of cultural discourse. In this case the ingredients are all there a fundamentally important philosopher (by some even considered the father of modern philosophy), a famous painter, the background of the religious wars in Europe, and the rise of a new nation state. And yet, those threads feel largely separate throughout the book, hardly weaved in together. And the most disappointing part is the one that covers Descartes' philosophy, which is too didactical and fails to engage, even though his thinking was revolutionary for the time and is still considered pivotal today. The book still makes for a good read, but it could have been so much more.
This book is an example of what I call, for lack of a better term, `popularized intellectual history' where the author takes some interesting historical event or puzzle and uses it to provide a non-technical introduction to a particular thinker. (Other examples of this type of work are Matthew Stewart's The Courtier and the Heretic Leibniz, Spinoza, and the Fate of God in the Modern World which is about whether Leibniz and Spinoza ever met and James R Gaines' Evening in the Palace of Reason Bach Meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment about Bach meeting Frederick the Great.)

Steven Nadler, here, takes a look at the often used depiction of the French philosopher Descartes that hangs in Louvre and examines whether the portrait is by the painter it is usually attributed to or whether it is actually a copy of an earlier formal portrait. Along the way he reviews early Dutch culture and politics, explains why Descartes ended up living in the Netherlands, and the importance of portraiture during this period. He also provides an introduction to Descartes' thought during this period and the reactions of various friends and critics. The analysis of Descartes' writings are presented in a historical fashion.

I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in a non-technical introduction to Descartes as well as anyone interested in the general milieu and painting history of the early Dutch Enlightenment. Readers well acquainted with Descartes looking for any new philosophical insight into his work should look elsewhere. Notes, bibliography, and index all first rate. In addition, several color plates as well as black and white figures. I gave this a 4 rating because the narrative was somewhat choppy, realizing however the difficulty of combining art history and philosophy in a single small book.