Ruth Edith Hagengruber

This chapter argues that Emilie Du Châtelet’s practical moral philosophy and her theoretical physics are intimately connected into a systematic whole. Both the moral philosophy and the physics exhibit the same method, which relies, for example, on the principle of contradiction. Du Châtelet uses this method to argue against the injustice of women’s reduced educational opportunity and thus reduced freedom, as well as identifying the source of women’s social ostracism. Moreover, this chapter also shows a strong connection between content in morals and physics, and does so by focusing on the nature of freedom, and which conceptions of freedom are compatible with the laws of physics and the nature of force. Du Châtelet’s conceptual relations with a number of intellectuals, including Mandeville, Locke, and Voltaire, substantiate these points.

This book is a tribute to one of the most influential philosophers in the history of philosophy in recent times. With her four-volume work title “A history of Women Philosophers” and the volume of the non-Western history of philosophers, published in 2024, Mary Ellen Waithe’s writings have an international significance. Colleagues and friends, who have been companions for many years, have gathered in this book to honor her work. Contributions from the Middle Ages to the present, from the philosophy of religion to logic, cover a broad field that will attract equally broad interest. An otherwise unencountered collection of ideas is presented here, united by the bond of research into the history of women philosophers.

Die 1743 in Deutschland erschienene Übersetzung der Institutions physiques wurde zu einem der wichtigsten philosophischen Bücher der deutschen Aufklärung. Wolff, Kant, Euler setzten sich intensiv mit den neuen Ideen auseinander, die Du Châtelet in ihrer Naturlehre präsentierte. Ihre Hypothesentheorie beeinflusste die Wissenschaftstheorie bis ins 20. Jahrhundert. -Umfassende Einleitung zu Autorin, Werk und Wirkung -Eine der erfolgreichsten Autor*innen des 18. Jahrhunderts -Buch war sehr einflussreich für die deutsche Aufklärung -Immer noch relevant für Wissenschaftstheorie

In times of current crisis, the voices of women are needed more than ever. The accumulation of war and environmental catastrophes teaches us that exploitation of people and nature through violent appropriation and enrichment for the sake of short-term self-interest exacts its price. This book presents contributions on the currently most relevant and most urgent issues: reshaping the economy, environmental problems, technology and the re-reading of history from the non-western and western tradition. With an outlook into the problems of class, race and gender in its intersectional framing, the collection offers a unique overview of current research in these fields and contributes to the renewal and contemporary presentation of feminist thought from partly concrete perspectives with regard to factual issues.

Du Châtelet's philosophical analysis of time as presented in her Institutions physiques (1742) challenges prevailing Newtonian and Wolffian theories, asserting that time is not an external, absolute entity nor solely based on a relativistic and mathematical perspective. It is presented to be a construct of the human mind, emerging through the interplay of unity and difference. Du Châtelet also introduces the concept of “ideal time,” a uniform abstraction that enables the measurement of succession. Her analysis critiques and integrates competing philosophical views, resolving their conflicts within her innovative framework. Du Châtelet is presented as a transformative thinker, whose insights bridge philosophical divides and offer a methodological foundation for science in metaphysics.

The philosopher Émilie du Châtelet (1706-1749) was one of the most successful authors of her time in the fields of philosophy and science. Her texts were translated into several languages during her lifetime, which demonstrates the international appeal of her work. Many aspects contribute to her reputation as one of the most outstanding and famous philosophers of the 18th century. Among them is her emphasis on hypotheses as the basis of scientific research. The ideas she developed had an impact well into the 20th century, although her name had been forgotten. Her achievements can be discussed in a classroom setting by interpreting the chapter On Hypotheses, taken from her main work, the Foundations of Physics. The material has lost none of its significance and can, therefore, be a meaningful contribution to explaining the great ideas of the history of philosophy and addressing fundamental questions such as the discernment of what is true and false.

Why should the philosophy of the Pythagoreans be reduced to Pythagoras alone? Why do we learn about the ego only from Husserl and not from Conrad-Martius? What do we know about free will from Helene Druskowitz and why is Émilie Du Châtelet unknown to us? Many of the philosophers in this collection were celebrities in their own time. What can we gain from rediscovering the knowledge of women philosophers? Philosophy reflects the foundations on which we organise our world. There is no doubt that women create structures that shape our world. Over the centuries, women thinkers have formulated ideas and concepts to explain our world and to call for its reorganisation. This collection offers a selection of these ideas and concepts from over 2000 years. The new history of philosophy emerges in this way. It provides the basis for teaching and future research. Rooted in the past, it can use that experience to contribute to a new and better way forward.

Today[aut]Hagengruber, Ruth Edith, hypothesesHypothesis, hypothesesdetermine our scientificScience, scientific activity, and no one doubts that hypotheses are an essentialEssence, essentialtool of scienceScience, scientific. This was not always the case, on the contrary. Rather, the recognition of hypotheses as a crucial element for innovation in science marked a radical change when Émilie Du Châtelet proposed hypothesesHypothesis, hypotheses as the relevant research tool, to replace by the search for causesReason. It was not only the status of hypotheses and their function that were contested. The defense of the hypothetical conjecture served to change the idea of scienceScience, scientific and consequently the idea of science’s architectureArchitecture. The epistemicEpistemicimportance of principlesPrinciple, principlesand observationObservation was relativized and became a control instrument for the power of imagination. Du Châtelet equates her epistemological turn with that of Copernicus[aut]Copernicus when he reversed the perspective of how to see the universe. For all these reasonsReason, the fourth chapter in the InstitutionsInstitutionphysiques is a core chapter of Du Châtelet’s methodology. No wonder, Du Châtelet’s chapter on hypothesesHypothesis, hypotheses was influential and found its way into the writings of d’Alembert, Condillac, Euler and Kant, and its influence continued into the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, though her authorship was faded out.

In seiner Auseinandersetzung mit Immanuel Kant bestreitet Johann August Eberhard Kants Anspruch, in seiner Transzendentalphilosophie die Reichweite und Grenzen des Verstandes auf neue, zuvor nicht dagewesene Weise definiert zu haben. Eberhard dagegen meint die Prinzipien und Grundbegriffe transzendentalphilosophischer Erkenntniskritik schon aus der Leibniz-Wolffschen Schule ableiten zu können. An einschlägiger Stelle – im dritten Teil seiner Ausführungen Über den wesentlichen Unterschied der Erkenntnis durch die Sinne und durch den Verstand – belegt er diese Behauptung mit einem Verweis auf die „Definition“ der Erscheinung in den Institutions physiques der Philosophin und Mathematikerin Du Châtelet.

This book expands the known canon by presenting arguments and concepts from women philosophers, from all periods of the history of philosophy, from antiquity to the present day. The collaborative collection is an undertaking that emerged from intensive discussions on how to expand the philosophical canon, which formed the conclusion of the Libori Summer School 2019. This Libori Summer School, the third in a row, was held to enhance the study of texts written by women philosophers from Antiquity up to now and intended to give opportunity to young scholars to connect and to build networks. Presenting such a collection is even more urgent today because a diversification of the canon has long been called for. Nevertheless, to date there is little explicit material available for this purpose. To make this book suitable for both academics and students, it is structured in such a way that readers can use excerpts and individual chapters from it that suit their needs, be it in moral philosophy, politics, or phenomenology, etc. Containing chapters on women such as Suor Juana, Emilie Du Châtelet, and Nisia Floresta and supplemented by contextualization, namely by some brief biographical information and by the systematic integration of her argument into the debates of the respective periods, this book is an important resource highlighting the achievements and value of women in philosophy and calling for a further diversification of the canon.

In ihrem Beitrag: „Poisoning the well, or how economic theory damages moral imagination" (Nelson 2016) fragt Julie Nelson "What if people might act out of social and other-regarding concerns, as well as reasonable self-interest in their economic lives, but are pushed by the economic theory of self-interested utility maximization to believe that it is permissible – and perhaps even appropriate – to be irresponsible, opportunistic, and selfish when participating in markets? What if business leaders might pay attention to the implications of their decisions for workers, communities, the environment, and others who are affected by their firm's actions, but economic theory encourages them to believe that they should – and in fact must – focus on getting every last dollar of profit possible?" (Nelson 2016: 184) Ich lese diese Fragen von Nelson als einen Appell, die Theorie der Ökonomie umfassend auf ihre Tauglichkeit für unsere Lebenswirklichkeit zu hinterfragen. Die Theorien der Ökonomie mögen Disziplinen-intern funktional sein, sie sind damit noch lange nicht lebenstauglich. Im Gegenteil, sie erweisen sich als Überlebens-avers, im schlimmsten Falle, Leben-zerstörend. Die Aufgabe, das Wozu der Wirtschaftsphilosophie lässt sich von hier aus schon trefflich bestimmen. Die Herausforderung jedoch bleibt, Umfang und Perspektive, von wo aus die Kritik und auch die In-Blicknahme des Ganzen geschehen kann, zu verorten, und genau dieses Anliegen ist im Beitrag von Ingo Pies und Marc Hübscher zentral: Aus welcher Perspektive kann diese Frage beantwortet werden, wenn diese Bestimmung als denkerische Selbstaufklärung realisiert werden soll?

The Enlightenment is well known for its critical analysis of the Bible. Though the Renaissance sources have been acknowledged as an inspiration of this movement, the Querelle des femmes and its critique of the Bible has never been considered as a possible catalyst for the enlightened philosophical discourse. For centuries women have fought against interpretations of the Bible. This paper argues that the Querelle des femmes criticized the Bible not only because of its patriarchal content but also criticized philosophical thinking that, for supporting the views from the Bible and its misogynist stance, misused the instruments of rational philosophy. Arguments from 1400-1750, from Nogarola to Du Châtelet prove women philosophers’ fight in favour of a critique of the Bible from a rational point of view, reflecting also on the status of what it meant, to argue rationally.

Since 2006, her third centenary, the eminent female figure of French Enlightenment Emilie Du Châtelet has increasingly gained attention from international scholars. Given the fact that Elisabeth Badinter’s ground-breaking monograph was published in the 1980s,[1] a comprehensive description of Du Châtelet’s life and work, delivered by an expert of the French speaking community, has been long awaited. This is especially the case, since Voltaire experts Kölving and Brown have prepared the ground for French research on Du Châtelet, delivering material on her and Voltaire resulting in a voluptuous collection of “new documents and clarifications” [2] and a recently updated collection of letters from Du Châtelet.[3] In 2011, Du Châtelet’s extensive examination of the Bible was published,[4] and her translation and comments were re-edited in 2015.[5] An abundance of new material is waiting for interpretation, which is so monumental that any presentation is a challenge. Le Ru presents a succinct yet focused and well written analysis which delivers a considerable amount of information, suitable for reading by a broader audience. Likewise, this volume is exceedingly valuable for Du Châtelet scholars. It takes a very particular and systemizing stance on Du Châtelet’s entire opus and offers new perspectives. To introduce the intellectual dominion of Du Châtelet in all its facets, the book deals with philosophy, science, physics, mathematics, and morals. By doing so, Le Ru evokes the realm of Du Châtelet’s inspiration. The book is divided into two parts. The first delivers a short but profound analysis on the state of Du Châtelet scholarship. The second part adds new insights on Du Châtelet’s legacy. This highly informative book covers Du Châtelet’s work as a whole and offers its ownoutstandingly fruitful stance on research about Du Châtelet.

Women who are deprived of their histories can be compared to people who have lost their memories. They are unable to build a personal identity. This analogy may be the leading paradigm for my paper, which is primarily dedicated to epistemological questions. Throughout the last 40 years, many scholars have dedicated their endeavors to conserving the writings of women philosophers. Now we have access to valuable sources that show that the history of women philosophers stretches back as far as the history of philosophy itself. Using the history of women philosophers as a methodical approach to philosophy is a unique and indispensable means to widen and to change philosophical insights. Re-reading the history of philosophy and including the ideas of women philosophers, however, does not only add some more narratives but challenges the methodology of philosophy. The history of philosophy that we are traditionally educated in the western world is simply not true to the facts. Thus, I demand a rewriting of the history of philosophy that takes into account the ideas that are incorporated in the writings of women philosophers and that have been denied by the narratives and fabric of sexualized and patriarchally influenced thought.

Luise Adelgunde Victorie Kulmus Gottsched (1713–1763) war eine der originellsten und einflussreichsten deutschen Intellektuellen der ersten Hälfte des 18. Jahrhunderts, einem an herausragenden Frauen nicht armen Jahrhundert. Die Frühaufklärung hatte die Frauenbildung zu einem öffentlichen Thema gemacht. In diesem Rahmen einer neu erwachenden nationalen Politik entstand der Kult einer »Minerva«, den Luise Kulmus Gottsched als instrumentalisierte »falsche« Frauenpolitik kritisierte. Ihr stellte sie das Ideal einer gebildeten Minerva entgegen, die der Wahrheit dient und »mehr wert ist als tausend Männer«.

Grâce aux recherches de B. Schwarzbach, S. Seguin et d’autres, nous comprenons aujourd’hui à quel point Émilie Du Châtelet était engagée dans ce qu’on appelle la littérature clandestine. Son fameux ouvrage Examens de la Bible montre la force radicale de sa pensée. Madame Du Châtelet était peut-être aussi un catalyseur des idées libérales et radicales des Lumières mais la recherche, telle qu'elle se présente aujourd’hui, n'a pas encore exploré ses idées. Elle n’a pas non plus accepté l’idée que les femmes auraient pu prendre une part considérable à ce mouvement. Pourtant, ce sont elles qui ont été particulièrement exposées à l'injustice que les normes religieuses imposaient aux femmes, y compris dans la société.

In this second issue of volume one, a welcome feature are those articles that bring to our readers, new historical information about women philosophers, new analyses of important positions supported by and questions addressed by select women philosophers, as well as articles that compare and contrast the views of several women philosophers on particular topics. This issue reflects on the context of women’s theoretical contributions, with articles that address the question of women’s agency and the historical account through which women were acknowledged (or not) as originators of or contributors to important theoretical developments within the mentioned disciplines. In recent decades an overwhelming amount of philosophical works by women has been made available by historians of philosophy. This issue reflects those strides towards recovering philosophical writings by women. Issue 2 of this volume is organized chronologically and starts with a paper from Jonathan Head: “Anne Conway on Heaven and Hell”. Conway’s The Principles of the Most Ancient and Modern Philosophy (1690) offers representations of heaven and hell, revising our conventional image of hell. Conway presents hell in a way that she believes is more consistent with the postulate of a loving and just God. In part, Conway denies the possibility of eternal torment and emphasizes the benefits that suffering brings to a living being. Conway describes heaven as a realm of “perfect rest” where creatures enjoy unity and harmony with Christ and other heavenly spirits. This state involves an increasing understanding of the world, a continual process of perfection and harmony with other heavenly spirits. The article concludes with a description of Conway’s eschatology in the broader intellectual context of the revival of Origenist theology in its intellectual setting and in the changing framework of eschatological thought in the early Quaker community. Monica M. Mastrantonio discusses in her paper, “Lady Mary Wortley Montagu – a philosopher? The epistolary woman, because women could not be called Philosophers, Scientists, Entrepreneurs” aspects of a different and new transcultural worldview that reflects diversity and knowledge combined with philosophy in a new way. In the past, there were two roles with which Lady Mary Wortley Montagu was associated. One was her experience at the Turkish Embassy, where she highlighted cultural diversity. A second role she was associated with was international travel. Mastrantonio argues that Montagu was more than a literary aristocrat who could describe customs and traditions from abroad. Using Montagu’s complete letters, the author brings into discussion the fact that Montagu was also a vaccine entrepreneur and a journalist on political and urban issues, paving the way for discussions on philosophical questions. Many letter writers of the 16th and 17th centuries were already feminists who were politically and artistically active in their time and wrote letters with precision and expertise. The letters of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu are an important aspect in building a transcultural worldview in which diversity and knowledge combine with philosophy differently than it was before. In this short but engaging article, “American Women in the Transcendental and Pragmatist Movements”, Carol Bensick provides an overview of two important philosophical movements of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Transcendentalism and the Pragmatism that emerged in part from that movement. In the course of identifying numerous women who contributed to both movements, Bensick examines how some of them were included in the early history of American philosophy, only to be omitted from later histories. Bensick argues that the recent designation of women philosophers as “feminist pragmatists” is historically an inaccurate identification and one that pragmatists did not use to describe themselves. The French philosopher Simone Weil, the Swiss Jeanne Hersch and the Spanish Maria Zambrano each examined how bodily elements function in the rational search for truth. In his paper Oblique Paths to Truth: Myth and Bodily Elements in Simone Weil, Jeanne Hersch and Maria Zambrano, Piergiacomo Severini examines popular “body” myths referred to by these philosophers and analyses the language they use to express that bodily elements precede consciousness and reason. Through these myths/stories we learn that truth cannot be known directly through objects. Instead, the “knowing subject” necessarily elaborates indirect paths to transcendent truth. Severini argues that the effort to reintegrate the human attachment to the marginal world is peculiar to women philosophers in the history of philosophy and thus points to an alternative path to the human search for meaning that differs from the mainstream of Western male philosophy. As a philosopher, Hedwig Conrad-Martius has been intensively engaged throughout her life in researching the question of what reality is and has contrasted her reflections with those of Husserl and others. In her contribution “Conrad-Martius: the ´Real-Reality of the World – in Dialogue with Aristotle, Aquinas and Husserl”, author Irene Breuer deals with Conrad-Martius’ concepts of reality as “real reality”, with being, existence and essence and relates them to the concepts in Aristotle, Aquinas and Husserl. She discusses once again the questions of the hypostasis of being – by which the author claims that this is about the noema itself, and about the emergence of being in particular. The author’s thesis is that although Conrad-Martius rejects transcendental reduction, Conrad-Martius does accept eidetic reduction and the positing of a sphere of primordial and given facts. Driving this sphere back into a transphysical realm, it can provide a ground for Husserl’s sphere of original facts, which itself remains beyond the reach of phenomenological enquiries. Consequently, the author concludes, Conrad-Martius and Husserl meet here in their investigations, and yes, they complement each other, at a point where “the real bursts into reality”. Join us in unveiling this universe of women’s ideas. We are happy to welcome our contributors and readers, as we improve our understanding of the history of philosophical ideas by adding new perspectives and new insights. We enter a new universe of praiseworthy ideas by women theorists, one that will doubtlessly contribute to a world description that is more accurate than a narrative written without these voices. Philosophy starts here.