Early Modern Intellectual History

Roger Bacon (c. 1220-1292) was one of the earliest commentators on Aristotle's Parva naturalia. In his De sensu commentary, composed in the 1240s, one finds an extensive discussion on the definition and reality of colour. The established division of Bacon's works is in two: the early period of his Paris lectures and the mature period. The later is characterised by an intense occupation with optics, and by the elaboration of his theory of the multiplication of species. Bacon's most thorough discussion of colour is found in his questions on De sensu, which is considered an early work, although it shows marks of a later revision. 1 I present this discussion and its resulting extremely realistic theory of colour in another paper. 2 In this chapter, I examine the ways by which Bacon's interest in optics and the development of the theory of the multiplication of species in his so-called 'mature' writings affected his conception of colour. The most salient feature of his mature interest in colour is the distinction between real and apparent colours, which is the focus of this chapter. This distinction touches the core philosophical conundrum of the validity of sensation in general, and with it, of our ability to properly distinguish between reality and appearance. When cast in the context of our colour experience, the following problem is at stake: do colours inhere in things independently of their relations to light and perceivers, or are they rather a subjective experience? Bacon is firmly grounded within the Aristotelian tradition, which takes colours to have real existence in the world. 3 However, not all colour-experiences are equal, and a demarcation is required between those that can be trusted and those that cannot. This chapter concerns the components of that demarcation, as conceived by Bacon. The chapter begins with a short presentation of the essentials of Bacon's De sensu theory of colour, especially its differentiating criterion between real and apparent colours. It then examines its modifications in his mature period of work. It first addresses Bacon's analysis of the phenomenon of the rainbow and similar phenomena in which a bow of colours appear. Bacon formulates his distinction between real and apparent colours within the frame of this discussion. The influence of the development of his theory of the multiplication of species upon his theory of colour is examined next along with various

In this short treatise the method of engaging with works like Makasib and Rasa’il will be explained as well as important advice for the seekers of knowledge to help them on their journey and guide them to study any textbooks.

The path of serious study in the Islamic seminary (hawzah)—particularly in the sciences of fiqh (jurisprudence) and usul al-fiqh (principles of jurisprudence)—is demanding and requires more than mere attendance in classes. Major works such as Makasib and Rasa’il of Shaykh Ansari are not simply books to be read; they are training grounds for developing critical thought, methodological precision, and scholarly discipline.

To succeed in this journey, one must move beyond passive listening or rote memorization. Instead, the student must engage in a seven-stage process, carefully designed to prepare the mind, absorb knowledge, and transform it into lasting understanding and skill.

These seven-stage process are not specific to Makasib or Rasa’il—they apply to any book you wish to study. Whether you are studying Halaqat, Kifayah, or even attending a dars kharij (advanced research seminar), these steps must be observed.

The term “talisman” originates from the Arabic word for “magical image” and refers to an astrological or other symbol engraved on a stone or metal under the auspices of a planet. Talismans were believed to harness the power of planetary spirits and were prepared with specific metals, stones, and symbols corresponding to the planet’s influence. The preparation involved elaborate rituals, including consecrated instruments, robes, incense, and invocations, all aligned with the planetary day and hour.

The document "The Revolutionary Model Through the Centuries" analyzes the evolution of the concept of revolution from the 19th to the 21st century, tracing its trajectory through three main cycles: the liberal, the totalitarian, and the asymmetric.
The 19th century was characterized by the liberal and nationalist revolutions, driven by the principles of the Enlightenment, such as liberty, equality, and popular sovereignty. The bourgeoisie was the driving force of these movements, seeking to establish constitutional governments, limit monarchical power, and guarantee individual rights. The revolutionary waves of 1820, 1830, and 1848 demonstrated that these ideas had taken irreversible root. However, the 1848 revolution, known as the Spring of Nations, marked a turning point. The bourgeoisie, fearful of the social demands of the emerging proletariat, became more conservative and began to negotiate with the traditional elites. This led to a paradigm shift, where the consolidation of the nation-state through military and diplomatic action (as in the unifications of Italy and Germany) replaced popular mobilization. The brutal repression of the Paris Commune in 1871 showed that the liberal state would not tolerate uprisings that questioned the bourgeois social order.
The 20th century inaugurated a new revolutionary cycle with the outbreak of World War I. Unlike the 19th-century revolutions, which sought to expand liberalism, those of the 20th century aspired to total change and, in many cases, resulted in dictatorial and totalitarian regimes. Two antagonistic yet structurally similar models emerged: Bolshevism and Fascism. Bolshevism was based on the idea that a vanguard elite could seize power and reorganize the entire society. Fascism, for its part, sought to create a new social order through extreme nationalism, mass mobilization, and the negation of liberal democracy. This cycle was joined by the anti-colonial revolutions, which dismantled the European empires, and the anti-communist revolutions at the end of the century, which marked the end of the cycle begun in 1917. The document highlights that, despite the violence and radicalism of the 20th-century revolutions, they ultimately globally expanded many of the liberal principles that the 19th-century revolutions had sketched out.
Finally, the analysis focuses on the 21st century, where revolution has lost its status as the central political horizon. Contemporary protest movements, such as the Arab Springs, are horizontal and decentralized, often organized through social networks. Although they can destabilize regimes, they lack the capacity to consolidate a new political order. In parallel, the revolutionary logic has been adopted by reactionary actors, such as radical jihadism. This type of movement uses asymmetric violence, not to seize a state, but to destabilize the world order. The document concludes that the revolutionary idea has not disappeared; rather, it has metamorphosed into two opposite poles: peaceful and fragmented protests, and reactionary and violent revolutions. History shows that revolutionary cycles transform, and the current challenge is to find new ways to channel the desire for change without repeating the totalitarian failures of the past.

L’article examine ce que l’on pourrait appeler l’avènement de trois moments dans l’histoire de la cartographie du monde ibérique à partir de la critique de l’historiographie anglo-saxonne dédiée à l’histoire des sciences et la revendication de la science ibérique au début du XXIe siècle. En même temps, il interroge la portée et les limites de la notion de « mondes ibériques » dans l’écriture d’une histoire de la cartographie de la première modernité. Finalement, il avance des propositions méthodologiques et des approches théoriques alternatives pour aborder son étude.

was an Italian philosopher, historian, and jurist, one of the most significant exponents of eighteenth-century radical Enlightenment. Best known for his monumental Istoria civile del Regno di Napoli (1723), a work that openly challenged papal claims and the political influence of the Roman Church, Giannone combined erudition and legal expertise with a militant commitment to the principle of state autonomy from ecclesiastical power. His writings circulated widely across Europe, attracting both admiration and condemnation, and his life was marked by exile, repeated attempts at intellectual rehabilitation, and a long imprisonment that ended with his death in Turin. Through his works, he left a lasting mark on European debates about the relationship between religion, politics, and law in the early modern age.

A tanulmány a Traditio Apostolica anaforáját elemzi, és annak alapján kísérletet tesz református úrvacsorai imádság megalkotására. A szerző bemutatja a forrás keletkezéstörténetét, szövegkritikai kérdéseit és liturgiatörténeti összefüggéseit, majd részletesen elemzi az anafora teológiai szerkezetét és hangsúlyait. A dolgozat célja, hogy rámutasson: a legkorábbi ismert eucharisztikus imádság hozzájárulhat az úrvacsorai imádság megújításához az apostoli hagyomány szellemében.

This study examines the anaphora of the Traditio Apostolica and proposes a Reformed eucharistic prayer inspired by it. The author explores the text’s complex history, critical issues, and liturgical context, offering a detailed theological analysis of its structure and emphases. The aim is to show that the earliest known eucharistic prayer can contribute to the renewal of the Lord’s Supper in the spirit of the apostolic tradition.

Basinio da Parma (1425-57) stands out as one of the most distinguished intellectuals at the court of Sigismondo Malatesta (1417-68). Celebrated for his elegant Latin verse and exceptional erudition, Basinio was not only a sophisticated writer of elegiac, epic, and didactic poetry, but also a passionate advocate for Greek language and literature in Renaissance Rimini. His work embodies the humanist ideals of his age and became a crucial element of Malatesta’s policies. As a cornerstone of Sigismondo’s courtly propaganda, Basinio’s poetry left an enduring mark on the artistic and literary life of fifteenth-century Italy.
L’amore, le armi, le stelle contains essays by leading scholars across the fields of literature, philology, and art history to shed new light on Basinio’s legacy and the vibrant world of the Malatesta court. Reflecting the renewed scholarly attention to this pivotal figure and his network, the present volume offers a deeper understanding of the richness and complexity of one of the Italian Renaissance’s most fascinating cultural milieus.

Edward de Vere in a Contemporary Elizabethan Portrait and in a Modern Sculptural Reproduction Synopsis This essay examines the hypothesis that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, may have been the author of the works traditionally attributed to William Shakespeare. The humanistic education of Oxford and his mastery of several languages are analyzed, both compatible with the linguistic and classical sophistication of the canon. In the lyrics of the Sonnets, the poet, though addressing subjects considered scandalous and licentious, nonetheless allows his true identity to shine through. This identity is revealed not only through the autobiographical reflections of the experiences evoked in the texts, but above all through the singularity of the poetic language, which becomes the most authentic and unmistakable sign of his creative self. The current analysis, brief though it is, also reflects on the author's direct contact with court life, on Elizabethan political networks, and on how his travels in Italy may have influenced the settings of the works, and especially the use of the Petrarchan-derived 1 canon in his sonnets. Attention is given to the social pressures that might have induced a noble author to remain anonymous. Biographical resonances are considered between Oxford's experiences and the themes of Hamlet and the Sonnets, in contrast with the scant evidence relating to the man from Stratford. The gaps in Stratford documentation are explored, suggesting the need for further consideration. Though not definitive, the Oxfordian hypothesis offers a coherent interpretative framework for the erudition and thematic concerns of the canon, presenting Oxford as a plausible, though contested, candidate behind the Shakespearean corpus.

Tractatus theologico-politicus pertains to matters of biblical interpretation as much as it does to political philosophy. In addition to laying the groundwork for a method of biblical interpretation in his seventh chapter, Spinoza engages in biblical exegesis throughout his work. Among the many portions of the Bible that he uses and discusses are the Psalms. An examination of Spihighly selective use of Psalms shows this use to be apologetical. Spinoza used the Psalms as part of his defense of his political philosophy, wherein he privatized religion, handing over public religious matters (such as ritual) into the hands of the secular state. s in the Context of His Political Project 3 Tractatus theologico-politicus is known primarily as a work of political philosophy, yet s text addresses matters of biblical exegesis. In fact, his entire seventh chapter is devoted to laying out a method for how to interpret the Bible scientifically. In this article, I examine use of the Book of Psalms...

The early modern political philosopher Benedict de Spinoza is often viewed as the father of the historical critical method for studying the Bible. Building upon the work of contemporaries, Spinoza constructed the methodological foundation upon which later historical criticism would build. This paper examines the political background of Spinoza's biblical criticism, thereby placing Spinoza's work in its sociohistorical context. The Thirty Years' War and the political turmoil in the Dutch Republic provide the proximate backdrop for Spinoza's political theory, and upon his biblical criticism.

From Off Island to Across the World is a sweeping personal and spiritual chronicle that traces the journey of William Stoertz—from his ancestral roots in Martha’s Vineyard to a life of global mission, providential insight, and profound service. Anchored in family legacy, theological reflection, and firsthand experience within the Unification Movement, this essay explores the tension between tradition and transformation, isolation and universality, obedience and conscience.
Through vivid storytelling and prophetic analysis, Stoertz examines the spiritual vulnerabilities of nations, the overlooked role of God’s providence in historical philosophy, and the internal challenges within religious movements. At its heart lies a singular moment—the Heaven-and-Earth Blessing of October 1, 1999—which reorients his life and lineage toward eternal purpose.
This work is both testimony and call to action: a reminder that the fulfillment of Heaven’s plan depends not on blame, but on maturity, initiative, and personal responsibility. It invites readers to see history not as a cycle, but as a divine drama—one in which each of us plays a vital role.

The aim of this work is to highlight the social and ideological-intellectual characteristics of ecclesiastical/ clerical intellectuals, in the axis of modern European and Greek history, without excluding the review of relevant elements from the medieval period. The text includes an introductory sociological part, where the fundamental terms of the approach are presented, concerning the definition of the status of intellectuals/ scholars and the intellectual, educational and social conditions and prerequisites of the clergy's integration into that status. The analysis then moves on to consider the action of ecclesiastical scholars in the institutional framework of the Orthodox Church during the Ottoman period. In the major part of the text, a historical periodization of the subject is attempted, based on the characteristics and activity of the medieval scholar monks; the so-called religious/ or Christian humanists, as well as the ideological/ confessional propagators of early modernity. Thematic subjects of the relationship between clergy and intelligentsia are also proposed, as seen in the eclectic relationship between faith and knowledge, Church and Enlightenment, Church and secularism (ideology). The focus on the Greek-speaking intelligentsia mainly refers to the community of scholars of Constantinople as the ecclesiastical centre and ideological reference point of the Greek Orthodox world.

L'OUVRAGE Bien plus que de simples outils d'apprentissage, les notes de cours des étudiants sont des reflets de leur époque, témoins de pratiques d'enseignement mais également lieux d'une extraordinaire créativité. Les dessins et gravures des manuscrits anciens, comme les éléments graphiques des notes plus récentes, ont une visée pédagogique mais aussi ornementale, mnémonique, humoristique, sociale ou symbolique. Il s'agit de comprendre et de retenir la matière, et parfois également de lutter contre l'ennui, de personnaliser son outil d'étude ou de manifester son appartenance à des communautés, pratiques qui perdurent encore aujourd'hui. Cet ouvrage accompagne l'exposition Embellir le savoir (Musée L, Louvain-la-Neuve), qui retrace plusieurs siècles de prise de notes et met en lumière l'efficacité de l'image et son rôle dans l'acquisition et la transmission du savoir universitaire. Elle présente une trentaine de manuscrits datant des XVII e et XVIII e siècles issus des collections des Archives de l'UCLouvain, mis en regard avec des documents allant du XIX e siècle à nos jours.

A comprehensive series of essays and articles that cover and explain the "Shakespeare Authorship Debate", a recent controversy among literary, dramatic and academic circles who have formulated and established their own views and opinions with regard to authorship of some 36 plays and several volumes of poetry attributed to the "Bard of Avon". It explains why this great literary fraud was perpetrated, by whom and how a relatively obscure son of a farmer/property developer from Stratford-upon-Avon was wrongly presumed to be the greatest living playwright and poet the world has ever known.

Athanasius Kircher's (1602-1680) Iter Exstaticum II (1657) represents the continuation of his imaginative "ecstatic journey," this time directed into the depths of the Earth rather than outward into the heavens. Like Iter Exstaticum (1656), it is cast as a dialogue between Theodidactus and the angelic guide Cosmiel, as well as an imagined personification of the water element, Hydriel. Whereas the Iter Exstaticum explored the celestial realms and Ptolemaic–Copernican debates about cosmology, the Iter Exstaticum II turns its focus toward the interior structure of the globe and how it is created and modified. In this work, Kircher begins to articulate his theories of subterranean fire, vast hidden waters, exhalations, and channels that interconnect the surface seas with underground reservoirs (hydrophylacia). He conceives a global hydraulic and volcanic system that explains tides, earthquakes, and eruptions. The style blends speculative natural philosophy with allegorical, symbolic, and theological elements. What is revealed to the ecstatic visionary is at once a physical mechanism and a depiction of divine harmony. The guiding theme is that natural processes operate within an ordered cosmos, where the Earth's hidden organs function like parts of a vast living organism - the Geocosm. Iter Exstaticum II foreshadows Kircher's later Mundus Subterraneus (1665), where these ideas would be systematized and richly illustrated. In the 1657 text, they remain in a more visionary, literary form, with Neoplatonic overtones. The book testifies to Kircher's attempt to reconcile Jesuit pedagogy with the developing culture of natural philosophy. It belongs to a hybrid genre where scientific curiosity and empiricism are inseparable from allegorical, symbolic, and theological frameworks.

Athanasius Kircher's (1602-1680) Itinerarium Exstaticum (1656) is a cosmological discourse that combines early modern science and Christian mysticism within a Neoplatonic framework. Framed as the ecstatic journey of a seeker named Theodidactus (translates to "taught by God"), the work depicts a tour through the celestial realm guided by the angelic figure Cosmiel. As Theodidactus travels from Earth through the planetary spheres and divine archetypes, Kircher describes a richly populated cosmos, drawing from 17th-century astronomical discoveries while aligning with Aristotelian metaphysics of actuality and potentiality.

In the 1560s and 1570s, Cardinal Giovanni Francesco Commendone
(1524-1584) and his secretary Antonio Maria Graziani (1537-1611) were
entrusted with important papal commissions in German and Polish lands,
gaining a deep understanding of the political and religious situation of
Central-Eastern Europe. The role of these two papal diplomats is highlight-
ed by their political archives, an extraordinary collection of documents
which is currently the subject of the research project The Nuncio’s Secret
Archives: Papal Diplomacy and European Multi-denominational Societies
Before the Thirty Years’ War (NSA), financed by the Italian Ministry of Uni-
versity and Research. This rich documentation, in particular, underscores
the importance of Padua in the network of relationships established by
Commendone and Graziani. They frequently returned to the university
city during breaks in their Alpine missions, taking part in circles and
gatherings, and meeting with Venetian patricians, professors, and foreign
students. In this context, the correspondence between Graziani and the
Polish student Mikołai Tomicki —the son of a prominent nobleman who
had embraced the Reformation —is of particular significance. A parallel reading of the letters written by Graziani and those written by Tomicki
reveals the educational project offered to the young Pole by the two papal
envoys. Moreover, it sheds light on the perspective of Commendone and
Graziani, in which diplomacy and culture were closely intertwined.

The Cathedral Archives, Libraries and Collections Association (CALCA) plays a pivotal role in preserving and promoting the rich cultural and ecclesiastical heritage of Anglican cathedral libraries across the UK and Ireland. Affiliated with the Association of English Cathedrals (AEC), which represents 42 Anglican cathedrals and royal peculiars, CALCA oversees the management, cataloguing, and public engagement of these historic collections. These libraries, dating back to the medieval period, house diverse materials including medieval manuscripts, early printed books, and records spanning theology, science, medicine, and local history. Notable examples include Canterbury Cathedral’s extensive collection, Hereford’s chained library with the Mappa Mundi, and Wells Cathedral’s rare 1472 Pliny’s Naturalis Historiae. The Cathedral Libraries Catalogue, a significant project by the Bibliographical Society, documents over 25,000 pre-1701 books, highlighting their intellectual breadth beyond theology.

In 2025, CALCA will award its Gold Medal to Dr. David Shaw for his distinguished contributions to bibliography, particularly through his work on the Cathedral Libraries Catalogue and publications on French and English printing history.

BOOKS IN POLISH IN LIBRARY OF CHERNIHIV COLLEGE
The goal of the research. The author plans to research the collection of books written in Polish that were in the library of the Chernihiv college (to find out the types of diversity, thematic palette, etc.). By comparing the library catalogue of the Chernihiv college, compiled in the early 1820s, with the contemporary catalogues of the Kharkiv and Pereyaslav colleges, we plan to identify common features inherent in these masses of Polish-language books. Methodology. The methodological principles of such modern directions of historical science as intellectual and cultural history, as well as comparative studies, are the basis. Focusing attention on Polish-language books in the library of one of the colleges becomes an example of “case studies”, when the broader cultural context is characterized through the prism of a specific phenomenon. Scientific novelty. The establishment of qualitative parameters of the complex of Polish-language books of the library of the Chernihiv college, which is carried out for the first time, affects further research and interpretation of the manifestations of cultural diffusion and the dialogue of Polish and Ukrainian cultures on Ukrainian lands in the 18th — early 19th centuries. The study of these books allows us to draw conclusions not only about the educational functions of the collegiate library, but to consider it as an important indicator of Ukrainian-Polish interaction. Conclusions. The study of books in the Polish language, which were contained in the library of the Chernihiv college, testifies to the preservation of Polish influences on the cultural space of the Hetmanate during the 18th — early 19th centuries. The repertoire of Polish-language books demonstrates that the college was an important channel of dialogue between Ukrainian and Polish cultures. The Chernihiv college and the intellectuals associated with them were part of the European book culture, spreading it in the east of Europe. The catalogue of the college library shows a wide range of modern scientific and educational literature in the Polish language from various fields of knowledge, including theological topics. This allows us to talk about encyclopedism as a common feature of collegiate libraries.

This speculative essay suggests the possibility of a different perspective on the question whether Pan’gye Yu Hyŏngwŏn (1622-1673) was in any sense a modern thinker, the question that has preoccupied both Korean scholars and James Palais (and prompted them to provide quite different answers). What was Pan’gye’s thought like if seen from a seventeenth-century or eighteenth-century European perspective rather than a nineteenth- or twenty–century perspective, which has too frequently been applied to it? And might this perhaps change our perception of the usefulness of the concept of modernity? The focus will be on a number of intellectuals who were active in north-western Europe and particularly in The Netherlands, France and Germany.

Columbia Seminar in the Renaissance,
October 14, 2025, Columbia University, Faculty House

Luigi Parma, Spy, Prisoner, Historian of the Mediterranean (1543-1552)

My paper presents the personal story and analyzes the books of histories of a forgotten historian of the early modern Mediterranean: Luigi Parma, who was active in Venice in the middle of the 1540s and died before 1552. A pro-Spaniard historian, involved in trans-imperial espionage in Venice, Luigi Parma was the author, among other texts, of a forgotten, and essentially unexplored, Mediterranean and Eurasian history of the wars between the Spanish and the Ottoman Empires (1535-1545), later entitled History of Charles V's Wars Against the Turks. This historical work was seized by the Counsel of Ten in 1544 and has remained unread, and unstudied, at the Biblioteca Marciana since then. A micro-historical exploration of Luigi Parma's personal story and the analysis of Parma's History allows us to enter the political, diplomatic, and intellectual laboratory of a historian of the early modern globalizing world, whose life, aspirations, and works have been crushed in the great trans-imperial rivalry of the sixteenth century.

This paper explores the structural parallels between the ancient practice of geomancy (known as ʿilm al-raml in Islamic traditions) and the binary logic underlying modern computer science. In geomancy, sixteen figures are generated by combining four lines of dots, each line appearing either as one dot (odd) or two dots (even). This binary structure maps directly onto four-bit binary codes and can subsequently be expressed in hexadecimal form. By presenting a comparative table, computational examples, and philosophical analysis, the paper demonstrates that geomancy may be considered one of the earliest algorithmic systems in human history. Beyond historical interest, this framework opens avenues for interdisciplinary applications in cryptography, artificial intelligence, digital art, and the philosophy of information .

The eighteenth-century was a challenging religious climate in England. It was the height of the Enlightenment era and a time when traditional Christianity faced mounting skepticism, if not outright ridicule, by such deist critics as Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu, Diderot in France and Edward Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Cherbury, John Toland, Matthew Tindal, Thomas Woolston and others in England. For example, Lord Herbert of Cherbury's writings, De Veritate (1624) and his later followup in De Religione Gentillium (1663), emphasized the need for reason alone, without revelation, as sufficient for worldly and spiritual wisdom. In this, Herbert was a seminal figure for English Deism. Likewise, following on the heals of Herbert, John Toland in his books, Christianity Not Mysterious (1696) and his Pantheisticon (1720) challenged those aspect of the Christian faith that depended upon divine revelation, while opting for a purely naturalistic view of reality and religion. Yet, into this milieu Joseph Butler (1692-1752), later Bishop of Durham, penned a distinctive pastoral response, while he was still the a vicar of a parish in northern England, to those wrestling with questions about faith and

In addition to reviewing Jan Palkoska’s recent translation of the Leibniz-Clarke correspondence, this study presents a broader reflection on the state of Czech/Slovak translations of Leibniz’s work. In this context, Jan Palkoska’s effort is appreciated together with similar attempts by other translators, although their overall weakness is identified in terminological inconsistency and, in the case of Palkoska, some shortcomings in the content are also identified. However, in contrast with the target of the OIKOYMENH publishing company itself, the author of the study specially emphasizes its merit for students and early-career academics as a convenient (although partial) tool for cultivating language diversity
in general and the richness of the national language in particular.

Forsideillustrasjon: S14720.12 Bunnskår / Hel bunn av kokekar (ikke spannformet). Funnet in situ i gulvlag på Hølland, Rogaland. Funnet er ikke saerskilt omtalt i artikkelen i dette nummeret, men foto inngår i den samlete dokumentasjonen fra utgravningen. Det skarpe skillet mellom svart/brunt i skårenes profil skyldes brenning med dyremøkk som også ble påvist i ovnsanleggene på lokaliteten. CC-BY foto: Anette Graesli Øvrelid, AM, UiS. Skrive for Primitive tider? Primitive tider oppfordrer både etablerte og uetablerte forfattere til å skrive. Vi er interessert i artikler, kommentarer til tidligere artikler og rapporter (enklere, ikke fagfellevurderte tekster). Kanskje blir din artikkel neste nummers debattema! Send inn ditt manuskript og la det få en faglig og seriøs vurdering av redaksjonen. Husk at hele prosessen kan vaere tidkrevende, så planlegg i god tid. Innleveringsfrister finner du på våre nettsider. Det er likevel ingen grunn til å vente til siste øyeblikk, send gjerne inn før fristen! For å lette arbeidet for deg og for oss, er det helt nødvendig at du setter deg godt inn i forfatterveiledningen og følger den. Forfatterveiledningen finner du på våre nettsider: https://journals.uio.no/PT/index Vi ser fram til å høre fra deg!

The goal is to identify and characterize the collection of works by thinkers of the Age of Enlightenment, which were in the private libraries of the clergy of the Hetmanshchyna and Sloboda Ukraine in the second half of the 18th — early 19th centuries. The author paid special attention to those of them that presented the Enlightenment discourse. The object of the study is the registers of 15 private libraries of the clergy. The work uses methodological principles of intellectual and cultural history. Reading is seen as a practice that is realized in specific acts and places, and is similar for certain social groups. The defining criteria for selecting libraries were the
biographies of their owners, who had a lot in common. Characteristic features of the “collective portrait” of these individuals were their education at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy or one of the Orthodox colleges, and their teaching there. Most of the library owners were bishops, abbots,  and archimandrites, whose lives were mostly connected with the monasteries and churches of Hetmanshchyna or Sloboda Ukraine. All of these individuals can be called the intellectual elite of the clergy. Since reading habits and features differed quantitatively and qualitatively in different regions of Europe and social environments, in this article, the author focuses on identifying
the repetition of philosophical works in the private libraries of the clergy of Hetmanshchyna and Sloboda Ukraine. This is how the transition from analyzing books in one library is made to characterizing an array that belonged to a certain circle of readers, which reflected their “canon” of reading. Conclusions. The study of the contents of the analyzed 15 private libraries of theclergy of Hetmanshchyna and Sloboda Ukraine allows us to assert that in the second half of the 18th — early 19th centuries a dynamic cultural process took place in Ukrainian lands, the result of which was the active transfer of the intellectual product, which was a bright sign of the Age of Enlightenment. The contents of the clergy’s libraries testify to the involvement of their owners in the pan-European process of searching for answers to the challenges of the Enlightenment. The facts of presence of certain “iconic” books of the Age of Enlightenment, their recurrence in the private book collections of the clergy, serve as an important indicators of the intellectual and cultural preferences of this social group. In particular, the high frequency of certain works by philosophers in book collections allows us to assert that ideas about the dominance of harmony in nature and human relations (Leibniz, Wolff ) and the human ability to improve (Locke) were most easily spread in the Ukrainian lands. Educational literature and scientific works that could
be used in the educational process, as well as pedagogical works, were in particular demand. The results of the study of clergy book collections will allow us to further compare them with changes in the reading culture of other social groups in Ukrainian lands and other regions of Europe.

This is a review that was published by the Sixteenth Century Journal of an intriguing anthology of essays written to honour Marcia Colish, a notable medieval scholar. The essays vary widely in content, some more technical, and some more entertaining than the others. Aoo are outstanding, I highly recommend this book

This workshop brings together contributors to a podcast on the history of Christian Kabbalah, focusing on its political dimensions and the intersection of intellectual history and political power. It aims to explore how Christian Kabbalists, often supported by both secular and ecclesiastical authorities, used Kabbalah to further their agendas and influence early modern European intellectual and political landscapes.

Hogyan lehet meghatározni a kora újkori londoni olvasóközönséget és a kortárs populáris kultúrához fűződő viszonyát? Tanulmányomban erre a kérdésre keresem a választ London első napilapja, a Daily Courant, hirdetéseinek elemzésével, amelyek sokszínűségükkel és innovatív jellegükkel lehetőséget adnak körvonalazni nemcsak azt, hogy a vizsgált periódusban a társadalom mely része folyhatott bele az egyre növekvő hírfolyam követésébe, hanem azt is, hogy milyen gazdasági, kereskedelmi, egészségügyi és kulturális termékekre volt kereslet és igény ennek az olvasóközönségnek a körében, illetve milyen népszerű újdonságokat (legyen az termék vagy műfaj) kívántak velük megismertetni és elfogadtatni. A 17. és 18. század fordulója eseménydús periódusa volt Európa történelmének. A rijswijki és a karlócai béke nagyban hozzájárult a kontinensen végbemenő hatalmi átrendeződés felgyorsulásához, emellett pedig előrevetítette a spanyol örökség körüli konfliktus eszkalációját. Nem meglepő, hogy addig nem látott mértékben megnőtt a kereslet a külföldi hírek iránt, amelyek teret engedtek a periodikus sajtó felvirágozásának. Angliában erre az 1695-ös cenzúratörvény hatályvesztését követően került sor, amely után mondhatni robbanásszerűen emelkedett meg a periodikák száma, ezzel együtt pedig politikai jelentőségük szignifikánsan megnőtt. Ezek a hetilapok a külföldi és belföldi tudósítások mellett tartalmaztak hirdetéseket is. Ezekben eleinte maguk a hetilapok kiadói hirdették saját
kiadványaikat, viszont egyre több potenciális eladó látta meg a bennük rejlő lehetőségeket, így ez a rovat rövid idő alatt egyre több helyet foglalt el a lapok hasábjain. Tematikájukat tekintve rendkívül sokszínűek voltak, a városi élet minden területét lefedve. Tanulmányomban azokat a hirdetéseket elemzem, amelyek specifikusan a populáris kultúra műfajának termékeire irányultak a századfordulón, ezáltal igyekszem megválaszolni, hogy a mely termékekre lehetett a legnagyobb kereslet és ez hogyan befolyásolhatta a hirdetések funkcionális változásait.

It is commonly assumed that the "classical" concept of sovereignty, bequeathed by Jean Bodin, stands in tension with fundamental commitments of liberal modernity, including cosmopolitanism and the aspiration to establish a global legal order. We argue, in contrast, that Bodin's theory of sovereignty presupposes a universal legal order that imposes binding and enforceable constraints on sovereigns. To substantiate this claim, we examine Bodin's curious assertion that God, the sovereign ruler of the cosmos, employs a celestial government or administration of angels and demons to enforce His laws. By situating Bodin's earlier political works alongside his later religious and philosophical writings, we demonstrate that his political thought was neither "absolutist" nor "constitutionalist," in the ordinary sense of those terms; rather, he was a theorist of what we propose to call "demonic constitutionalism."

Uncorrected proofs. Please cite published version, forthcoming winter 2025.

Abstract: This chapter compares two early modern accounts of war and the possibility of enduring peace between states. The first belongs to Spinoza. The second belongs to Kant. Kant can be credited with providing an influential account grounded in his cosmopolitanism that shaped subsequent policies in international relations and war theory, while Spinoza provides a subtle, though often overlooked, realist account. Specifically, the chapter contrasts Spinoza’s views in his Political Treatise (1677) with Kant’s views in Toward Perpetual Peace (1795). Spinoza argues that although the careful design of social and political institutions can go a long way towards eliminating the appeal of war to states while also promoting conditions that favor peace between states, the power for war is an essential feature of states and that states are by nature enemies. Kant, meanwhile, conceives the cosmopolitan conditions for a perpetual peace between states. Significantly, despite their dissimilarity, both Spinoza and Kant offer theories of war that stand outside of the dominant just war theory tradition.

RSpinoza's theory owes a linguistic debt to the natural law tradition, but it is also capable of acquiring an entirely new perspective. For Spinoza, the law does not follow afinalistic rationale. Spinoza's theory is a genetic justification of the law. When he shows that God does not rule nature according to His will; and when he demonstrates that man does not work out the idea of God according to his image and likeness; he intends to claim that the relation between natural laws and divine laws is fictitious. If one considers natural law as the power of everything that exists rather than an expression of man's nature, the just order between cause and end can be reset. The Scholastic school of natural law created a well-defined structure: natural laws are not merely those which guide man towards the achievement of excellence and perfection, of honour and glory, of knowledge and the Good; they are also what makes divine laws necessary.

***

La teoria di Spinoza è linguisticamente debitrice della tradizione del diritto naturale, ma è anche capace di acquisire una prospettiva del tutto nuova. Per Spinoza, la legge non segue una logica finalistica. La sua è una giustificazione genetica della legge. Quando mostra che Dio non governa la natura secondo la Sua volontà e che l’uomo non elabora l’idea di Dio a propria immagine e somiglianza, intende affermare che la relazione tra le leggi naturali e le leggi divine è fittizia. Se si considera il diritto naturale come la potenza di tutto ciò che esiste, piuttosto che come espressione della natura umana, è possibile ristabilire un giusto ordine tra causa e fine. La scuola scolastica del diritto naturale aveva costruito una struttura ben definita: le leggi naturali non sono soltanto quelle che guidano l’uomo verso il raggiungimento dell’eccellenza e della perfezione, dell’onore e della gloria, della conoscenza e del Bene; sono anche ciò che rende necessarie le leggi divine.

This essay explores the Shakespearean canon through the lens of Christian Moraru’s theory of rewriting, reframed within the Oxfordian hypothesis that attributes authorship to Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford. Drawing on Moraru’s notion of rewriting as a postmodern act of cultural critique and identity reframing, the essay argues that the Shakespearean plays, especially those rooted in Italian sources, can be read as a sophisticated form of intertextual self-fashioning. De Vere’s putative authorship, undertaken under the pseudonym "William Shakespeare," is interpreted as a strategic practice of concealment, transforming personal experience and political constraint into veiled narrative structures. Italian locations, borrowed plots, and themes of disguise and displacement become literary devices through which De Vere reconfigures both identity and authorship. Works such as Romeo and Juliet exemplify this layered rewriting, blending multiple sources into new textual configurations that obscure and encode the author's presence. In this view, Shakespearean drama emerges not as a singular expression of genius, but as a palimpsest of self-effacement, cultural translation, and aesthetic resistance.

Sixteenth and seventeenth-century printers drew from a steady repertoire of images whose repetition was part of the accrediting mechanism of early modern text technology.  Publishers like Theodor de Bry and Levinus Hulsius, whose firms were active between the 1590s and 1630s, employed entrepreneurial marketing schemes that relied on the recycling of earlier motifs that would have been recognizable to consumers. Among the most repeated images, we might call these sustainable images, were those designed to visualize travelers’ encounters with extra-Europeans. While perhaps predictably exotic, many of these images became in some respects, more importantly, familiar to their readers and viewers. By recycling images from the classical tradition and costume literature, publishers assimilated unfamiliar peoples into the printed repertoire of familiar tropes. Instead of challenging credulity, however, the particularity of these pirated designs had the effect of both naturalizing the exotic and bringing them closer to home. This essay shows the copy’s complicity in epistemological shifts in iconography and geography: it argues that a few critical visual decisions by early modern publishers planed down the marvelous to become familiar to the consumer. The wings that endowed Mercury with flight actually bridged geographic distances between the Americas and Africa in travel literature; while sightings of the headless Acephali in the Americas collapsed the temporal distance typically associated with their alterity.

Michelangelo’s David is a monumental Renaissance sculpture created between 1501 and 1504, portraying the biblical hero David in idealized human form. This paper presents a formalist critique of the sculpture, analyzing its proportions, pose, and anatomical precision. The statue’s contrapposto stance, muscular tension, and serene facial expression reflect both physical and psychological readiness. Through its marble medium and lifelike scale, David exemplifies High Renaissance ideals of humanism and beauty. The critique highlights Michelangelo’s mastery in balancing technical skill and expressive realism.

Early printed books in the Smidt Museum, Part II. Old Hungarian Library. An outstanding part of the Smidt

Museum's extremely rich and diverse collection is the early printed books, published before 1850. The publication of the pre-1711 publications began in volume 43 of the Savaria a Vas Megyei Múzeumok Értesítője. After the incunabula and the antiqua, we publish the 17th century Hungarikums with a detailed bibliography and descriptions of the copies.

What evidence is there so far discovered that would confirm that William Shakspere of Stratford-upon-Avon was a poet and playwright? We examine the records in order to substantiate the claims of Stratfordian academics that they have mistaken the Warwickshire Bard to be a poet or playwright and reveal who was more likely to have written plays and poetry that were published in the 1623 Folio.