Giordano Bruno (1548–1600) presented a theory of the atom:
- “Corporeal things comprised two material principles, earth [atom] and water, and two immaterial [principle] ones, spirit and soul.“
- Earth [atom] is indivisible.
- Earth [atom] is component of the soul.
- Spirit relates to a human being.
- Spirit is incorporeal.
The following OntoUML diagram shows Bruno’s model of the atom.
| Class | Description | Relations |
|---|---|---|
| Principle | “Bruno’s alternative theory of the elements drew on Pythagoreanism, ancient atomism, medieval discussions, pro and contra, of indivisible minims and Nicholas of Cusa’s elemental doctrines (BOL III, 510–536). Corporeal things comprised two material principles, earth and water, and two immaterial ones, spirit and soul. By “earth” Bruno meant the discrete, identical, irreducible spheres of which physical things were made.” | |
| MaterialPrinciple; ImmaterialPrinciple | “Corporeal things comprised two material principles, earth and water, and two immaterial [principle] ones, spirit and soul.” | category of Principle |
| Indivisible | “Bruno’s alternative theory of the elements drew on Pythagoreanism, ancient atomism, medieval discussions, pro and contra, of indivisible minims” | characterizes Earth[Atom] |
| Earth[Atom] | “Corporeal things comprised two material principles, earth [atom] and water, and two immaterial ones, spirit and soul. He often called them “atoms” to emphasize their indivisibility. The circumferences and centres of these spherical atoms coincided. Hence, as some medieval authors had proposed, atoms were dimensionless bodies, unlike the atoms imagined by Democritus and other ancient atomists. They were, as Bruno said, the principles of spatial contraction, of solidity. “ | subkind of MaterialPrinciple |
| Water | “Corporeal things comprised two material principles, earth [atom] and water, and two immaterial ones, spirit and soul. Water, by contrast, was a continuum and the principle of corporeal extension. Two or more atoms, though dimensionless, bonded by water constituted a determinate body in space, just as two or more dimensionless points, in Bruno’s Pythagorean geometry, constituted a line. “The minimal body or atom was the substance of all things” (BOL I.3, 140). Observation confirmed this theory: dry, dusty, earth congealed with the addition of water. […] Water, by contrast, was a continuum and the principle of corporeal extension. Two or more atoms, though dimensionless, bonded by water constituted a determinate body in space, just as two or more dimensionless points, in Bruno’s Pythagorean geometry, constituted a line. “The minimal body or atom was the substance of all things” (BOL I.3, 140). Observation confirmed this theory: dry, dusty, earth congealed with the addition of water.” | subkind of MaterialPrinciple |
| Spirit | “Corporeal things comprised two material principles, earth and water, and two immaterial ones, spirit and soul. Soul, the principle of motion, aggregated atoms and thereby determined the identity of a body. Spirit—the spiritus popularized by Ficino—was the incorporeal medium through which soul connected with body. Soul accounted for the existence of fire. In its purest form, fire was the combination of water and light, which, as others, including Ficino, had explained, was the physical analogue of the intellectual soul governing all things (for soul and light, see further Section 4)” | subkind of ImmaterialPrinciple |
| Soul | “Corporeal things comprised two material principles, earth and water, and two immaterial ones, spirit and soul. Soul, the principle of motion, aggregated atoms and thereby determined the identity of a body. Spirit—the spiritus popularized by Ficino—was the incorporeal medium through which soul connected with body. Soul accounted for the existence of fire. In its purest form, fire was the combination of water and light, which, as others, including Ficino, had explained, was the physical analogue of the intellectual soul governing all things (for soul and light, see further Section 4)” | subkind of ImmaterialPrinciple; component of Earth[Atom] |
| HumanBeing | “Spirit—the spiritus popularized by Ficino—was the incorporeal medium through which soul connected with body [of a human being].” | in material relation with Spirit |
| Incorporeal | “Spirit—the spiritus popularized by Ficino—was the incorporeal medium through which soul connected with body” | characterizes Spirit |
Sources
- Knox, Dilwyn, “Giordano Bruno“, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2019 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.)
First published: 2023/2/18
Philosophy Models 