Descartes

Descartes
Descartes Descartes (d[asl]*k[aum]rt") prop. n. Ren['e] Descartes, a French philosopher and mathematician, born 159, died 1650. See biography, below.

Syn: Rene Descartes. [WordNet 1.5] Descartes, Ren['e] (Latinized Renatus Cartesius). Born at La Haye, Touraine, France, March 31, 1596: died at Stockholm, Feb. 11, 1650. A. celebrated French philosopher, founder of Cartesianism and of modern philosophy in general. He was graduated at seventeen from the Jesuit college of La Fl[`e]che, spent five years in Paris (1613-18), and then roamed about in search of knowledge in Germany, Italy, Holland, and Poland. In 1628 he attended the siege of La Rochelle as a volunteer. From 1629 to 1649 he led a retired life in Holland, spreading and defending his philosophical ideas. He finally went to Stockholm on the invitation of Queen Christina of Sweden; five months later he died there of pneumonia. The work that has made him famous as a philosopher is a short treatise entitled "Discours de la m['e]thode" (Leyden, 1637). It was published in French together with three essays in support of his theories, "La dioptrique," "Les m['e]t['e]ores," and "La g['e]om['e]trie." In it he revolutionized the science of thought. Descartes himself published during his lifetime "Meditationes de prima philosophia "(Paris, 1641; Amsterdam, 1642; translated into French, 1647), "Principia philosophiae" (Amsterdam, 1644), "Trait['e] des passions de l'[^a]me" (Amsterdam, 1649), and a polemic pamphlet entitled "Epistola Renati Descartes ad Gisbertum Vo[eum]itum" (Amsterdam, 1643). After his death his friends published his "De l'homme" (1664), "Trait['e] de la formation du foetus" (1664), "Le monde ou trait['e] de la lumi[`e]re de Descartes" (1664), "Lettres" (1657-67), and "Opuscula posthuma, physica et mathematica" (Amsterdam, 1701). Descartes ranked among the foremost mathematicians of his day. A separate reprint was made of his geometry, and the work itself was translated into Latin in 1649, and re[eum]dited in 1659 with notes and comments. In this form it constituted a classic standard throughout Europe, and presented an entirely new basis for the study of algebra and geometry. [Century Dict. 1906]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • DESCARTES (R.) — René Descartes est à la fois le plus célèbre et le plus grand des philosophes français. En France, cependant, sa célébrité ne tient pas toujours à son génie, mais à une simplification désastreuse de sa doctrine, où l’on ne voit qu’un rationalisme …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Descartes —   [de kart], René, latinisiert Renatus Cartesius, französischer Philosoph, Mathematiker und Naturwissenschaftler, * La Haye (heute Descartes, Département Indre et Loire) 31. 3. 1596, ✝ Stockholm 11. 2. 1650. Aus altem Adelsgeschlecht stammend,… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Descartes — V. «diablillo de Descartes, folio de Descartes». * * * Descartes. □ V. folio de Descartes. * * * Descartes, René …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Descartes — (René) (1596 1650) philosophe et savant français. Il fait ses études chez les jésuites au collège de La Flèche (1604 1612) puis étudie le droit, avant de s engager dans l armée hollandaise et au service de l électeur de Bavière. Après les Règles… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Descartes — (spr. däkart ), René (Renatus Cartesius), der Begründer der neuern dogmatisch rationalistischen Philosophie und der scharfsinnigste Denker der Franzosen, geb. 31. März 1596 zu La Haye in Touraine als Sohn eines Parlamentsrats, gest. 11. Febr.… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Descartes — (frz. Däkart), René, latinisirt Cartesius, Vater der neueren Philosophie und berühmter Mathematiker, wurde 1596 zu la Haye in Touraine aus reicher Adelsfamilie geb. und seit 1604 von den Jesuiten erzogen. Die Schrift De musica bewährte ihn als… …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Descartes — ☛ V. folio de Descartes …   Diccionario de la lengua española

  • Descartes — (spr. Däkart), René (Renatus Cartesius), geb. 31. März 1596 zu la Haye in Touraine, wendete Anfangs im Jesuitencollegium zu Laflèche großen Fleiß auf die Wissenschaften, allein bald glaubte er zu bemerken, daß sie, mit Ausnahme der Mathematik u.… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Descartes — (spr. däkárt), René, gewöhnlich Renatus Cartesius genannt, Philosoph, geb. 31. März 1596 zu Lahaye in Touraine, 1629 49 in Holland; von der Königin Christine nach Stockholm berufen, gest. das. 11. Febr. 1650; der scharfsinnigste Denker der… …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Descartes — Descartes, René …   Philosophy dictionary

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