Research of the last couple of years has revealed the vital role women played in the intellectual life of the early modern era. During this period, women all over Europe started to participate in the learned world and argued for their right to education. This also holds true for the Scandinavian countries. One of the most distinguished philosophical voices in this debate is that of Danish philosopher and translator Birgitte Thott (1610-1662). Famous all over Europe during the seventeenth century, Thott fell into oblivion in later times. She presented her defence of women's learning in a systematic manner in a chapter of her yet unpublished Neo-Stoic treatise On the Path to a Happy Life (1650s) entitled "That studies used in the correct fashion are useful for the female sex as well and by no means harmful" (= sFs). This article presents Thott and her work, places her arguments for women's learning in a European context, and reconstructs the Stoic background of her reasoning. The article also provides a critical edition and an English translation of sFs.
This article presents a new interpretation of Nicole Oresme's view of powers of the soul. It argues that Oresme denies that powers are virtually present in every part of the soul and that he endorses the identification of soul and powers. This has two important consequences: (1) the sensitive soul is nothing but a heterogeneous composition of different substantial parts held together; powers are not virtually present in every part of it, but are its distinct parts. (2) Oresme's position blurs the distinction between body and soul (with the exception of the human case). Indeed, since the powers of the soul are the actual configuration of the body, and since powers are the constitutive elements of the soul, form does not seem to be distinct from the body in any sense. This feature of his philosophy becomes more obvious in his later writings. In a way, his view entails a deflationist interpretation that seeks to reduce high-order powers (like psychological ones) to lower powers (i.e., physical ones). Starting from his famous Treatise on Configurations, in which this reductionist program is developed in a radical manner, the article aims to show that this fundamental thesis concerning the nature of powers is rooted in a long-standing philosophical conviction already devel oped in the commentaries on Aristotle that Oresme composed at the beginning of his career.
