CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2012
| Author | Novosel, Filip |
|---|---|
| Title | From Periphery to Centre: The Role of Marcus Antonius de Dominis in the 16th and 17th Century Scientific and Intellectual Movements |
| Summary | Marcus Antonius de Dominis (1560–1624), primarily known for his controversial ecclesiological activity, also left a mark on early modern scientific movements. Leaving a promising academic career in Italy in his early stage of life, he turned his activity to political and ecclesiological issues, giving up natural philosophy and dealing with it later only occasionally. However, this thesis focuses on problems concerning his natural philosophy and his surroundings among men of letters of late 16th and early 17th centuries. During his life, Dominis published two books on natural philosophy, which serve as the main source for the research. The first one is De radiis visus et lucis in vitris perspectivis et iride: tractatus Marci Antonii de Dominis, per Ioannem Bartolum in in lucem editus (Venice, 1611) and the other one is Euripus seu De fluxu et refluxu maris (Rome, 1624). In the former, inspired by Galileo’s presentation of the spy glass in Venice in 1609, Dominis firstly discusses lenses, trying to give a theoretical explanation of the spectacle and spy glass function. Keeping the focus on optics, the second part of his treatise analyzes the appearance of a rainbow. The latter work, published in the last year of Dominis’ life, is focused on the phenomenon of ebbs and tides, and the shape of the Earth. Following early modern methods developed in natural philosophy, the thesis shows the extent Dominis adopted novelties and how much he relied on old authorities, such as Euclid, Vitello and other antic and medieval scholars. In order to give a complete picture of a late 16th and early 17th century scholar, Dominis’ role in the broader scope of the early modern republic of letters is also presented. His connections and acquaintances with Galileo, Bacon and other scholars of the time are introduced primarily through the analysis of various letters. |
| Supervisor | Kontler, László |
| Department | History MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2012/novosel_filip.pdf |
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