Passion and Action: The Emotions in Seventeenth-Century Philosophy

by Susan James

Passion and Action is an exploration of the role of the passions in seventeenth-century thought. Susan James offers fresh readings of a broad range of thinkers, including such canonical figures as Hobbes, Descartes, Malebranche, Spinoza, Pascal, and Locke, and shows that a full understanding of their philosophies must take account of their interpretations of our affective life. This ground-breaking study throws new light upon the shaping of our ideas about the mind, knowledge, and action, and provides a historical context for burgeoning current debates about the emotions.

Genres: Nonfiction

328 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Susan James FBA (born 1951) is a British professor of philosophy at Birkbeck College London. She has previously taught at the University of Connecticut and the University of Cambridge. She is well known for her work on the history of seventeenth and eighteenth-century philosophy.

Reviews

[Chad D]

I am not a philosopher. This book exposits in depth and detail subtle philosophico-psychological models. Yet it does so with enough clarity that I believe I understand most of them. In particular, I believe that I understand Aquinas's model of the passions better than I have before. And for these things I am grateful to Susan James.

[Janice]

Woman philosopher rocks