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Aug 26, 2023Liked by Helen De Cruz

“let's start with what I propose is a much richer conception of reason that Enlightenment authors had. This richness of reason included enduring concerns about how to conceptualize things like the arts and their relationship to science.”

To me, this is the crux of where modern science has gone awry; the separation between art and science has brought with the latter a certain air of pretence, superiority, as if it's the sole province of geniuses. This false superiority undeservingly makes it unapproachable for the general populace.

Thank you for shedding light on this important topic.

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Jul 13, 2023Liked by Helen De Cruz

Thanks much for this interesting piece on one of the attempts to align ancient planetary polytheism with the inchoate rationalism of the early Enlightenment period. The overlap of the two ways of thinking is of course an enormous scholarly playground, less policed now than formerly. I question whether Descartes was a religious believer. Pascal took him for an undeclared atheist, and with the example of Bruno before him his paranoia was justifiable. The reconciliation attempts continue unabated among astrologer with very limited success. Even I have a theory!

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