Kepler's Cosmological Synthesis

Patrick J. Boner, Ph.D. in History and Philosophy of Science (2007), is a Visiting Scholar at the Johns Hopkins University. He has published extensively on the history of astrology and astronomy, including the edited volume, Change and Continuity in Early Modern Cosmology (Springer, 2011).

• AcknowledgementsList of IllustrationsList of AbbreviationsIntroductionChapter One. Kepler’s Vitalistic View of the Heavens: Some Preliminary Remarks1. Kepler’s Clockwork Metaphor2. Spiritual Agency in Kepler’s Astrology3. Threads of Continuity in Kepler’s CosmologyChapter Two. Kepler’s Early Career in Astrology, 1594–15991. Not All Astrologers Created Equally: Kepler’s Perception of His Practice2. Conserving the Kernel: Kepler’s Early Conception of the Astrological Aspects3. From the Earth to Humanity: Further Effects of the Astrological Aspects4. The Weight of Proof: Observational Evidence for the Astrological AspectsChapter Three. The New Star of 16041. The Multiple Purposes of On the New Star2. The Soul of the Earth: Instinctual Responses to the Astrological Aspects3. Finding Middle Ground: The Soul of the Earth and the Surrounding Cosmos4. Philosophical Marvel and Theological Miracle: The Many Meanings of the New StarChapter Four. The Comets of 1607 and 16181. The Role of Divine Providence in Kepler’s Cometary Theory2. Clarifying Curvature and the Rectilinear Course of Comets3. Celestial Sympathy and Earthly Knowledge of CometsChapter Five. Kepler’s Apology1. Situating the Soul of the Earth: Elemental Instruments and their Animate Impetus2. Configurations and Consonances: The Earthly Orchestra of the Astrological Aspects3. Differences over Divinity: Kepler’s Final Criticisms of FluddConclusionBibliographyIndex of PersonsIndex of PlacesIndex of Subjects

In this important work, historian of science Patrick Boner ably argues against the view of Kepler as an early proponent of the mechanistic universe. The focus on mechanism makes it difficult to understand the place of astrology in Kepler’s thought. Dr. Boner develops the concept of Kepler’s “vitalistic universe,” which describes heavenly bodies in biological terms. This concept becomes the means to integrate Kepler’s astronomical and astrological thought.Sheila J. Rabin, Saint Peter's College