Descartes, René 1596-1650

Discours de la méthode : suivi d'extraits de la Dioptrique, des Mʹetʹeores, de la Vie de Descartes, par Baillet, du Monde, de l'Homme et de Lettres by René Descartes ( Book )
1,420 editions published between 1637 and 2013 in 16 languages and held by 5,340 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
"Dans son Discours de la méthode, Descartes semble annoncer Le Corbusier quand il rêve de villes tracées au cordeau, délivrées du désordre médiéval, et qu'il compare l'empilement chaotique des savoirs hérités de la tradition à ces constructions de guingois encombrant le coeur de la capitale. Déplorant la confusion de leur agencement et magnifiant la transparence des édifices rationnels, Descartes formule le projet utopique d'un futur proche où l'homme se serait rendu "comme maître et possesseur de la nature". Relire le Discours de la méthode c'est à cet égard remonter à la source des fantasmes prométhéens de la modernité. Cependant, Descartes redevient philosophe dès lors qu'il rejoint sa chambre et nous invite, à son instar, à nous arrêter en chemin pour tester la solidité de nos certitudes. C'est à l'âge d'homme, quand le savoir accumulé obscurcit l'esprit, qu'il faut savoir s'offrir, au moins une fois en sa vie, le luxe du doute. Faites place nette sur votre table de chevet pour y déposer, comme une purge aux vertus cathartiques, ce texte radicalement moderne!"--[Source inconnue]

Meditations on first philosophy by René Descartes ( Book )
107 editions published between 1932 and 2013 in 4 languages and held by 4,072 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
The translation of the Meditations is taken from three sources: the second Latin edition of 1642, which was the first one printed from Descartes' own manuscript and under his own supervision, the first French translation of 1646 by Duc de Luynes, but read and approved by Descartes, and the second French translation by Clerselier. An attempt has been made in this translation to integrate these three versions into one complete and accurate edition by the use of brackets and parentheses. The reader may, by omitting the parentheses and brackets, have a translation which contains all ideas in the three versions. By omitting bracketed material, he will have a translation essentially that of the original Latin, and by omitting material in parentheses, that of the First French edition

Discourse on method, and Meditations by René Descartes ( Book )
162 editions published between 1060 and 2012 in 3 languages and held by 3,414 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Rene Descartes was a central figure in the scientific revolution of the seventeenth century. In his Discourse on Method he outlined the contrast between mathematics and experimental sciences, and the extent to which each one can achieve certainty. Drawing on his own work in geometry, optics, astronomy and physiology, Descartes developed the hypothetical method that characterizes modern science, and this soon came to replace the traditional techniques derived from Aristotle. Many of Descartes' most radical ideas such as the disparity between our perceptions and the realities that cause them have been highly influential in the development of modern philosophy. from http://www.abebooks.com (August 22, 2011)

Discourse on the method and, Meditations on first philosophy by René Descartes ( Book )
49 editions published between 1912 and 2012 in English and held by 2,730 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Contains the three most important works by the French philosopher whose establishment of philosophical methods on the ground of reason ushered in the scientific revolution while providing fertile ground for philosophical debate ever since

Descartes philosophical writings by René Descartes ( Book )
21 editions published between 1952 and 2007 in English and Undetermined and held by 1,939 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
This book covers a remarkable amount of ground and has become something of a classic. Besides the Discourse and the Meditations, it contains Private Thoughts, the third set of Objections and Replies, most of the Regulae, parts of the Principia and the Dioptrics, together with crrespondence with Elizabeth, Princess Palatine, Mersenne and others

Discourse on the method of rightly conducting the reason, and seeking truth in the sciences by René Descartes ( )
76 editions published between 1753 and 2013 in English and held by 1,836 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
One of the most influential books ever written, Descartes' Discourse on the Method delves into some of the most basic and profound philosophical problems facing humanity. Follow this great mind through the logical processes that ultimately led him to conclude, "I think, therefore I am"--And to change Western philosophy forever in the process

Rules for the direction of the mind. Discourse on the method. Meditations on first philosophy. Objections against the Meditations and replies. The geometry. by René Descartes ( Book )
36 editions published between 1952 and 1987 in English and held by 1,770 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

The philosophical works of Descartes by René Descartes ( Book )
82 editions published between 1911 and 2009 in English and Undetermined and held by 1,653 WorldCat member libraries worldwide

The passions of the soul by René Descartes ( Book )
221 editions published between 1649 and 2011 in 11 languages and held by 1,579 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
Avec ce traité Descartes démontre que les passions sont du domaine de la nature et donc du corps. Celui-ci par son lien à l'esprit permet à ce dernier de les éprouver. Selon le philosophe les passions ne sauraient être mauvaises pour l'esprit, néanmoins elles se doivent d'être jugulées à l'aide d'une morale, opérée par le libre arbitre capable de les juger

The world and other writings by René Descartes ( )
12 editions published in 1998 in English and held by 1,565 WorldCat member libraries worldwide
"Descartes' The World offers the most comprehensive vision of the nature of the world since Aristotle, and is crucial for an understanding of his later writings, in particular the Meditations and Principles of Philosophy. Above all, it provides an insight into how Descartes conceived of natural philosophy before he started to reformulate his doctrines in terms of a skeptically driven epistemology. Of its two parts, The Treatise on Light introduced the first comprehensive, quantitative version of a mechanistic natural philosophy, supplying a theory of matter, physical optics, and a cosmology, and The Treatise on Man provided the first comprehensive mechanist physiology. This volume also includes translations of material important for an understanding of the work: related sections from The Dioptrics and The Meteors, and the first English translation of the complete text of The Description of the Human Body."--Jacket