The Enlightenment's Most Dangerous Woman

"By setting his detailed analysis of her major work, Institutions de physique, against discussions of early modern scientific and philosophical controversies, Janiak provides a lucid and thoroughly persuasive account of Du Châtelet's originality and her influence on Enlightenment thought. The book asks a powerful question: how did it happen that ""the most famous woman of the Enlightenment,"" whose ideas were echoed by thinkers across Europe was so thoroughly erased from histories of philosophy? Without ever losing sight of Du Châtelet and her philosophical vision, Janiak illuminates the blind spots and biases within the discipline of philosophy from the eighteenth century to the present. * Julie Candler Hayes, University of Massachusetts Amherst, author of Women Moralists in Early Modern France * Janiak offers readers clear, accessible descriptions of Du Châtelet's significant contributions to the philosophers' and physicists' arguments in the early decades of the Enlightenment. His book makes a useful addition to the literature on this amazing genius and this key era in the evolution of our modern philosophical and scientific approaches to our universe. * Judith P. Zinsser, author Ãmilie Du Chatelet: Daring Genius of the Enlightenment * Although she was recognised in her own time as France's premier female philosophe, Emilie Du Châtelet's star was subsequently obscured by the shadows of Newton, Leibniz, Voltaire, and other 'great men' of the Enlightenment. Until recently, she only attracted interest for her liaison with Voltaire. Janiak's study places her where she deserves to be, as a major female thinker of the Enlightenment. It is refreshing to read an account which discusses her as a thinker in her own right. Focusing on her masterwork, Institutions de physique, he navigates the complexities of her scientific and philosophical context to explain the importance of Du Châtelet's achievement for the history of science and philosophy. This is a masterly account, which will be appreciated by non-specialists as well as readers familiar with her work. * Sarah Hutton, Honorary Visiting Professor, University of York, UK * Janiak offers readers clear, accessible descriptions of Du Châtelet's significant contributions to the philosophers' and physicists' arguments in the early decades of the Enlightenment. His book makes a useful addition to the literature on this amazing genius and this key era in the evolution of our modern philosophical and scientific approaches to our universe. * Judith P. Zinsser, author Ãmilie Du Chatelet: Daring Genius of the Enlightenment * Although she was recognised in her own time as France's premier female philosophe, Emilie Du Châtelet's star was subsequently obscured by the shadows of Newton, Leibniz, Voltaire, and other 'great men' of the Enlightenment. Until recently, she only attracted interest for her liaison with Voltaire. Janiak's study places her where she deserves to be, as a major female thinker of the Enlightenment. It is refreshing to read an account which discusses her as a thinker in her own right. Focusing on her masterwork, Institutions de physique, he navigates the complexities of her scientific and philosophical context to explain the importance of Du Châtelet's achievement for the history of science and philosophy. This is a masterly account, which will be appreciated by non-specialists as well as readers familiar with her work. * Sarah Hutton, Honorary Visiting Professor, University of York, UK *"