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Poisson, Nicolas-Joseph (1637–1710)

from ENTRIES

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 January 2016

By
Fred Ablondi
Edited by
Lawrence Nolan
Fred Ablondi
Affiliation:
Hendrix College
Lawrence Nolan
Affiliation:
California State University, Long Beach
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Summary

Born in 1637 in Paris, Nicolas-Joseph Poisson was an Oratorian priest who, like others in the Congregation of the Oratory, championed Cartesian philosophy. In 1668 he published a French translation of Descartes’ Compendium of Music, together with his translation of and commentary upon a letter from Descartes to Constantijn Huygens that was given the title Traité des méchaniques. Poisson assisted Baillet in gathering information for his biography of Descartes and wrote a commentary on the Discourse on Method (1670). He corresponded with Clerselier and Desgabets, arguing with them over the Cartesian account of transubstantiation, which Poisson concluded was not compatible with the Catholic faith. As Cartesianism continued to generate controversy, Poisson was ordered by his superiors in the Oratory to abandon his plan to write commentaries on all of Descartes’ works. He died in Lyon in 1710.

See also Baillet, Adrien; Clerselier, Claude; Desgabets, Robert; Discourse on Method; Huygens, Constantijn; Oratorian; Transubstantiation

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Chapter
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The Cambridge Descartes Lexicon , pp. 603
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2015

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References

Descartes, René. 1991. Abregé de musique … Suivi des eclaircissements physiques sur la musique de Descartes du R. P. Nicolas Poisson, ed. Dumont, P.. Paris: Meridiens Klincksieck.Google Scholar
Poisson, Nicolas-Joseph. 1987. Commentaire, ou remarques sur la méthode de René Descartes. New York: Garland.Google Scholar
Clément, l'abbé. 1899. “Le cartésianisme à Vendôme, le Père Nicolas-Jospeh Poisson, supérieur du Collège l'Oratoire,” Bulletin de la Société Archéologique Scientifique et Littéraire du Vendomois 38: 23–46.Google Scholar
Lemaire, Paul. 1901. Le cartésianisme chez les Bénédictins. Paris: Germer Baillere, 112–17.Google Scholar

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