Margaret Cavendish's philosophical work is at last taking its rightful place in the history of seventeenth-century thought, but her writings are so voluminous and wide-ranging that introducing her work to students has been difficult
at least until this volume came along. This carefully edited abridgment of Observations upon Experimental Philosophy will be indispensable for making Cavendish's fascinating ideas accessible ... Read moreto students. Marshall's Introduction provides a helpful overview of themes in Cavendish's natural philosophy, and the footnotes contain useful background information about some of the texts and philosophers that Cavendish mentions. The additional selections from Descartes, Hobbes, Boyle, and Hooke also help contextualize Cavendish's views.
Deborah Boyle, College of Charleston An excellent introduction to an interesting but neglected voice in early-modern philosophy. Though her views don't fit neatly into the standard story of the development of natural philosophy in the period, Margaret Cavendish very much deserves to be read and appreciated for the alternatives she presents to what became the dominant picture. Marshall's Introduction and selection of texts allow the student to appreciate the diversity of views available at that crucial moment when the philosophical canon was being formed.
Daniel Garber, Princeton University Show Less