Essays, or discourses, vol. 4 (of 4) : Selected from the works of Feyjoo, and…
QR code
"Essays, or discourses, vol. 4 (of 4) : Selected from the works of Feyjoo, and…." by Feyjoo is a collection of philosophical essays written in the late 18th century. The volume gathers short, argumentative pieces on natural philosophy, epistemology, and morals that challenge inherited Aristotelian doctrine and promote cautious, experiment‑based reasoning. Expect lively “paradoxes” that overturn common opinions about fire, air, water, and qualities, alongside reflections on the limits of human knowledge
and the pretensions of learned display. It will appeal to readers of Enlightenment thought, history of science, and skeptical philosophy. The opening of the volume presents a table of contents and then launches into “Physical Paradoxes,” where the author argues from experiments that solar heat concentrated by burning‑glasses surpasses elemental fire, that air is naturally cold absent the sun’s influence, and that water tends toward solidity, not fluidity. He contends that so‑called “occult qualities” are no more obscure than familiar ones (magnetism versus heat), that united forces are not always stronger (citing thread and rope tests), and that variations in sunlight and warmth stem partly from sunspots; he explains why a burning‑glass works better in cold and why a flame’s cone is a forced shape due to air pressure. He then claims metals reside in plants (magnetic particles in ashes, “metallic vegetation,” and a bold conjecture linking the earth’s magnetism to ubiquitous iron), before beginning “On Sceptical Philosophy,” distinguishing prudent from extreme doubt, reappraising ancient skeptics, and defending a practical trust in “experimental” evidence against dream and delusion arguments. This opening culminates in the thesis that natural philosophy yields probability rather than demonstration, illustrating the point by showing how uncertain our definitions of species, genera, and even “man as a rational animal” remain, with doubts extending to animals’ sensation and plants’ sensitivity. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
Download for free
For your e-reader or reading app — Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books, Calibre etc.
Kindle → Use Send-to-Kindle
- Download the EPUB3 file above
- Upload it on the Amazon site your Kindle is registered with: amazon.com/sendtokindle for the US, amazon.co.uk/sendtokindle for the UK etc.
- It appears on your Kindle and in the Kindle app
Kobo, Nook etc. → Transfer via USB
- Download the EPUB3 file on your computer
- Connect your e-reader by USB and tap "Connect" on its screen
- Drag the file onto the e-reader drive
Phone, Tablet or Computer → Online or Reading App
Easiest: read online in your browser. Nothing to install.
Or use a reading app:
- Find and install one you like, for example Apple Books, ReadEra or Thorium Reader
- Download the EPUB3 file above
- Open it in the app
More help: iPhone / iPad · Android · Computer
Other formats & older devices
There may be more files related to this item.
About this eBook
| Author | Feijoo, Benito Jerónimo, 1676-1764 |
|---|---|
| Translator | Brett, John, -1785 |
| Title | Essays, or discourses, vol. 4 (of 4) : Selected from the works of Feyjoo, and translated from the Spanish |
| Original Publication | London: H. Payne, 1780. |
| Credits | Josep Cols Canals and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) |
| Reading Level | Reading ease score: 34.4 (College-level). Difficult to read. |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PQ: Language and Literatures: Romance literatures: French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese |
| Subject | Spanish essays -- Translations into English |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 76229 |
| ISBN (HTML) | 979-8-238-76229-6 |
| Release Date | Jun 5, 2025 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 401 downloads in the last 30 days. |
Project Gutenberg eBooks are always free!