Mechanism

mécanisme

Worked through in 1 video · 1 passage.

What Dominique Pagani says

Dominique Pagani presents mechanism as the great discovery of the classical age: the order of bodies becomes mechanistic, grounded in the concept of inertia1. He traces its origin to Galileo, who introduces it into physics by driving out hidden forces. Since then, extension and motion are enough to explain the order of bodies, without appeal to a soul or to occult forces2. He distinguishes this physicists' mechanics from the philosophical assessment Descartes makes of it3. In his view, mechanism de-animates the world and leaves the soul on the side of the cogito, which separates the order of bodies from that of thought4. Discussing Kleist's text on the marionette theatre, he gives an illustration of it: one need only control the puppet's centre of gravity, and its limbs, which are mere pendulums, obey gravity of their own accord5. He also takes up mechanism in a session devoted to "artificial intelligence".

Summary produced automatically from 5 of the passages below, to be reviewed; the numbers link to the moment in the session.

Series · 29 Sept 2023Kleist "On the Marionette Theatre" - Pagani - Readings on the Spot

13:35Galileo introduces it into physics by banishing occult forces; Descartes draws its philosophical conclusions, distinct from the mechanics of physicists.