Overview
- Offers the first extensive and interdisciplinary treatment of the theory of genetic inheritance
- Appeals to scholars across a range of disciplines, including history, philosophy, and theology
- Contributes to growing research into the relationship between philosophy and medicine
Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Medieval and Early Modern Medicine (PSMEMM)
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Table of contents (5 chapters)
Keywords
- Mr
- Medieval natural philosophy
- Embryology
- Transmission of the living
- Biological inheritance
- Morphogenetics
- Albert the Great
- Neoplatonism
- Aristotelianism
- Renaissance medicine
- Renaissance philosophy
- History of theology
- Virtus Formativa
- Formation of human beings
- Genetic inheritance
- Embyronic development
- Metaphysics
- Formative power
- History of biology
- Reproduction
About this book
This book provides the first comprehensive treatment of Albert the Great’s (c. 1193–1280) notion of virtus formativa, a shaping force responsible for crucial dynamics in the formation of living beings. Crossing the boundaries between theology and philosophy, the notion of virtus formativa, or formative power, was central in explaining genetic inheritance and the configuration of the embryo. By adopting an interdisciplinary approach, this book reconstructs how Albert the Great, motivated by theological open issues, reorganised the natural-philosophical and medical theories on embryonic development, creatively drawing upon Greek, Patristic, and Arabic sources. A valuable contribution to research, this book offers essential insights for those studying the history of embryology, medicine, and science in the medieval and renaissance periods.
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Amalia Cerrito is an Associate Member of the Centre for the Study of Medicine and the Body in the Renaissance (CSMBR) of Pisa, Italy. Having studied the history of medieval philosophy at the Universities of Pisa and Florence, she has published journal articles on the interaction between natural philosophy and the biblical exegesis of Albert the Great. Amalia’s recent publications are devoted to the theoretical background of Albert the Great’s natural philosophy and Neoplatonism’s influence on his theories of zoology, botany, and embryology.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Albert the Great (c. 1193–1280) and the Configuration of the Embryo
Book Subtitle: Virtus Formativa
Authors: Amalia Cerrito
Series Title: Palgrave Studies in Medieval and Early Modern Medicine
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24023-2
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: History, History (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-031-24022-5Published: 28 September 2023
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-031-24025-6Due: 02 December 2023
eBook ISBN: 978-3-031-24023-2Published: 27 September 2023
Series ISSN: 2524-7387
Series E-ISSN: 2524-7395
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XI, 171
Number of Illustrations: 1 illustrations in colour
Topics: History of Medieval Europe, History of Medicine, History of Science, History of Philosophy, Medieval Philosophy, History of Religion