Searching for the Source of the Mechanical Body in French Thought: From Descartes to La Mettrie to Villiers de L'Isle-Adam

WU Shijueshan

doi:10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20236104

Volume 6 Issue 1

Mar. 2023

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WU Shijueshan. Searching for the Source of the Mechanical Body in French Thought: From Descartes to La Mettrie to Villiers de L'Isle-Adam[J]. International Comparative Literature, 2023, 6(1): 74-87. doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20236104

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WU Shijueshan. Searching for the Source of the Mechanical Body in French Thought: From Descartes to La Mettrie to Villiers de L'Isle-Adam[J]. International Comparative Literature, 2023, 6(1): 74-87. doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20236104

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Searching for the Source of the Mechanical Body in French Thought: From Descartes to La Mettrie to Villiers de L'Isle-Adam

doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20236104

WU Shijueshan^,

Capital Normal University

Received Date: 2022-11-30
Accepted Date: 2023-02-19

Abstract

Abstract

“The body” has always been an important topic in Western philosophy and intellectual history. Under the principle of dualism, the body is only a supplement to the soul, and with the continuous development of Western science, it has gradually become a product of mechanistic theory. The mechanistic view of the body has also given rise to various contemporary science fiction narratives that reconstruct the body. This article will outline the development of the mechanistic view of the body in Western thought, especially in French philosophy:from the basic understanding of the body in medieval anatomy to Descartes' core view of "mind-body dualism" in mechanistic theory, to the view proposed by 18th century French doctor La Mettrie that "man is a machine," and finally to the science fiction writing on the mechanistic view of the body in Lilian Adam's novel "Future Eve" in 19th century France. It will explore the preset and impact of the mechanistic view of the body on the future human mind-body relationship and the possible existence of the body in the new era of digital technology.
- mechanism,
- the body conception,
- medieval anatomy,
- Descartes,
- La Mettrie,
- Tomorrow's Eve

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References(22)

References

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