Descartes: A Biography

c CUNYB/Clarke     December, :

Thoughts of Retirement 

of‘a short treatise on the passions, from which it will be apparent

how I think that, even in our own case, all the motions of our limbs which

accompany our emotions are caused, not by the soul, but exclusively by

the machinery of the body’ (v.). He was indeed stretching to its limits

the scope of a mechanical account of human activity.

A Treatise on the Passions

Descartes’ book on human emotions was published in Amsterdam and

Paris, toward the end of November.He had drafted a large part of

it during the winter of–and had sent it to Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s

reply included suggestions for improvement that, almost out of character,

were accepted by the author. Even with additions and corrections, however,

this still amounted to only about two-thirds of the final text. Descartes

made a clean copy of the revised text and sent it to Chanut, with permission

to show it to Queen Christina. At about the same time, he had a request

from an unidentified correspondent who had met him on his trip to Paris,

had heard about the essay on the passions, and had apparently offered

to assist the author in getting the final version into print.Descartes

explained that his reluctance to release the manuscript had nothing to

do with an unwillingness to serve his reading public. He wanted to keep

the essay confidential as long as possible, partly because it had been com-

posed originally ‘only to be read by a princess whose mind is so above the

norm that she easily understands what seems most difficult to our doctors’

(xi.). However, Descartes relented and promised ‘to revise this writing

onthe passions, to add what I think is necessary to make it more intelligi-

ble. After that, I shall send it to you and you may do what you wish with

it’ (xi.).

In the spring of, Descartes also sent a copy of the revised

manuscript to Clerselier in Paris. Clerselier advised him that it was too

difficult for ordinary readers. This prompted a further revision and plans

forthe addition of most of the material that was published as Part III of

the book.When he wrote to Clerselier, in April,heprobably still

had done little more than think about the additions that remained to be

written.

As regards theTreatise on the Passions,Ido not expect it to be printed until I have

arrived in Sweden. For I neglected to revise it and to add the things that you thought