Julien Offray de la Mettrie, best known as the author of "L'Homme machine, " appears as a minor character in most accounts of the Enlightenment. But in this intellectual biography by Kathleen Wellman, La Mettrie--physician-philosophe--emerges as a central figure whose medical approach to philosophical and moral issues had a profound influence on the period and its legacy.Wellman's study presents La Mettrie as an advocate of progressive medical theory and practice who consistently applied his medical concerns to the reform of philosophy, morals, and society. By examining his training with the...
Julien Offray de la Mettrie, best known as the author of "L'Homme machine, " appears as a minor character in most accounts of the Enlightenment. But i...
