The roots of the silver tree: Boyle,alchemy, and teleology |
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Authors: | Jennifer Whyte |
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Institution: | 1. University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom;2. Technical University Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 135 10623 Berlin, Germany;1. The Department of Philosophy, University of Haifa, 199 Aba Hushi Ave., Mount Carmel, 3498838, Haifa, Israel;2. The Interdisciplinary Center (IDC), Kanfei Nesharim, Herzliya, 46150, Israel |
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Abstract: | Though Robert Boyle called final causes one of the most important subjects for a natural philosopher to study, his own treatise on the subject, the Disquisition about Final Causes, has received comparatively little scholarly attention. In this paper, I explicate Boyle's complex argument against the use of teleological explanations for inanimate bodies, such as metals. The central object of this argument is a mysterious allusion to a silver plant. I claim that the silver plant is best understood as a reference to alchemical product: the Arbor Dianae, an offshoot of George Starkey's recipe for the Philosophers' Stone. Then, I show how the context of alchemy not only clarifies Boyle's argument but also places it within a wider dialectic about matter and teleology. I then contrast the parallel arguments of Boyle and John Ray on the question of whether metals have divine purposes and show that the difference is explained by Boyle's belief in the transmutation of metals. |
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Keywords: | Robert boyle John ray Teleology Alchemy George starkey Philosophers' stone |
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