Commentary written by Dr. Pierpaolo Betti

We are delighted to announce that the commentary to the first set of chapters of Du Châtelet’s Institutions de physique is now available online!

The chapters released – Chapters 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10 – address some of the most ambitious topics of the Institutions: space and time, the divisibility of matter, the solidity, porosity, and cohesion of bodies, and the nature of the simple elements that ground extended beings. The commentary, written by Dr. Pierpaolo Betti, helps the reader identify the main sources Du Châtelet drew upon in composing these chapters by providing full references to the text she mentiones or paraphrases.

This release marks a further important step in the wider historical-critical edition of the Institutions: in the coming months, the commentary to the remaining chapters will be made available online, until the full text of the Institutions is covered.

You can consult the commentary to Chapters 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10 here:

·      CHAPTER FIVE https://dcpm.historyofwomenphilosophers.org/documents/view/chapter_five

·      CHAPTER SIX https://dcpm.historyofwomenphilosophers.org/documents/view/chapter_six

·      CHAPTER EIGHT https://dcpm.historyofwomenphilosophers.org/documents/view/chapter_eight

·       CHAPTER NINE https://dcpm.historyofwomenphilosophers.org/documents/view/chapter_nine

·       CHAPTER TEN https://dcpm.historyofwomenphilosophers.org/documents/view/chapter_ten