Descartes: A Biography

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 Descartes: A Biography

Everard, was executed for his involvement in the famous Gunpowder Plot,

when a group of Catholics planned to blow up the walls of the Parliament

buildings in London in November. Despite this inauspicious start

to life, Kenelm Digby survived to win royal approval and to be entrusted

with an official diplomatic mission to Spain. He emigrated from his native

country in,following the death of his wife, Venetia, and remained in

Paris more or less continuously until after the Restoration. However, he

returned to London briefly inand, and during the latter visit

invited Descartes to England.

Digby had read Descartes’Essayswhen he first arrived in Paris, and he

subsequently wrote to Hobbes about them, with glowing praise that was

unlikely to be shared by his English correspondent:

I come now with this to make good what I promised you in my last: which is to putt

Monsieur des Cartes...his book into your hands. I doubt not but you will say this

is a production of a most vigorous and strong braine; and that if he were as accurate

in his metaphysicall part as he is in his experience, he had carried the palme from all

men living; which yet neverthelesse he peradventure hath done. I shall be very glad to

heare your opinion of him.

Digby’s enthusiasm for Descartes’ philosophy was such that he claimed

to have crossed the Channel from London to visit Descartes in Egmond

sometime in.Herecounted the story of his visit to Charles de Saint-

Denis, also known as Saint Evremond. According to his account, he tra-

velled to Egmond and arrived unannounced and evidently uninvited at

Descartes’ door. The details of the visit are so obviously favourable to

Digby that one must reserve judgment about their accuracy. For example,

Digby claimed that, after he arrived at Descartes’ house, he talked for

quite some time without identifying himself. At that point, Descartes,

‘who had seen some of his works, said to him that he had no doubt but

he was the famous Mr. Digby’.However, in, Digby had published

nothing that Descartes could have recognized or admired. Then, slightly

more credibly, Digby is supposed to have told Descartes:

Our speculative sciences are indeed wonderful and agreeable, but after all they are

too uncertain and too impractical to constitute a man’s total occupation. Life is so

short that we barely have enough time to get to know what is necessary, and it is much

more worthy of someone, who understands well the structure of the human body, to

research the means of prolonging life than to spend time in the simple speculations of

philosophers.