Hints towards the Formation of a More Comprehensive Theory of Life

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 1772-1834Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.8

Word count: 153K words
Chapters: 16

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Hints towards the formation of a more comprehensive theory of life. by ColeridgeAuthor: Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 1772-1834,Language: English, Class: QH: Science: Natural history, Release Date: Jan 17, 2008

Editor's review

Coleridge's Hints towards the Formation of a More Comprehensive Theory of Life is not a fully systematized scientific treatise but a sketch of a poet-philosopher's reflections on the nature of life. The book attempts to move beyond mechanism and mere biological classification, exploring from a philosophical vantage the relations among vital power, organization, and nature as a whole, and it bears the distinct stamp of Romantic natural philosophy. Its value lies not in empirical scientific conclusions but in understanding how, in nineteenth-century intellectual history, science and philosophy had not yet parted ways, and how Coleridge brought imagination and speculation into the explanation of nature. The prose is dense, and its terminology and argumentation carry the marks of its era; it is best suited as supplementary material for intellectual history and literary study. For the general reader it is less an accessible work of popular science than a document requiring patient interpretation; read alongside Coleridge's literary and philosophical background, its questions come into clearer focus.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and students of British Romantic literature and intellectual history
Readers interested in the history of science, natural philosophy, and the evolution of the concept of life
Literature enthusiasts who wish to understand Coleridge's philosophical thought
Readers with sufficient English proficiency and a habit of reading classic texts

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting systematic biological knowledge or modern life-science conclusions
General readers seeking an easy, fast-paced popular-science introduction
Those with little experience reading English who find nineteenth-century argumentative prose difficult

Reading tips

Read the preface and table of contents first to grasp the book's framing of its questions, then go through it chapter by chapter.
Read alongside background material on Coleridge's literature and philosophy to understand his terminology and stance.
Take notes on key concepts as you read, charting his basic attitude toward mechanism and vital power.
Do not feel obliged to finish in one sitting; read by theme and allow time to consult related intellectual-history materials.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a complete work of life-science theory?

No. It is closer to a philosophical sketch of questions and directions than to a complete, verifiable scientific system. It should be read in the context of natural philosophy and intellectual history, not as a modern biology textbook.

Can I read this book without a background in philosophy?

You can, but it will be demanding. The book deals with concepts such as vital power, organization, and nature as a whole, and its argumentation has the style of nineteenth-century prose. It helps to first learn something of Coleridge's basic thought and the Romantic view of nature before entering the main text.

Why is it recommended to read alongside intellectual-history materials?

Because much of the book's value lies in showing how thinkers reasoned before science and philosophy separated. Knowing the natural-philosophy debates of the time and Coleridge's thought as a whole helps readers distinguish what is era-specific from what remains a genuinely suggestive set of questions.

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About the author

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 1772-1834 Author

Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834) was a major English poet and critic of the Romantic movement. The library holds 21 of his works, including complete poetical collections, a single long narrative poem, selected poems, and prose criticism. His best-known work, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, is distinguished by its strange sea narrative, supernatural imagery, musical language, and rich imagination. Biographia Literaria sets out his critical ideas on imagination, fancy, and poetic language, exerting a lasting influence on later literary theory. His poetry often blends philosophical reflection, religious feeling, and natural description, combining the simplicity of ballad form with meditative speculation. Public information is limited, so this note relies mainly on the library's holdings to describe his subjects, style, and literary influence without inventing biographical details.