Description: The Well-Ordered Universe argues that Cavendish's natural philosophy, social and political philosophy, and medical theory share an underlying concern with order. This reveals interesting connections among Cavendish's natural philosophy and her views on gender, animals and the environment, and human health, and explains her commitment to monarchy and social hierarchy.
Review Quotes: "The Well-Ordered Universe is a welcome spark to further discussion, and scholars will enjoy engaging with Boyle on a variety of philosophical questions." -- Brandie R. Siegfried, Early Modern Women
"The Well Ordered Universe by Deborah Boyle is a critical element in the now constantly expanding discussion of the philosophical views and arguments of Margaret Cavendish" -- David Cunning, Locke Studies "Boyle's elegant and careful book, informed by a deep knowledge of the primary texts and a secondary literature spanning multiple disciplinary boundaries, goes a long way toward discerning the order in Cavendish's texts, and to illuminating the systematic philosophy they contain. This book should be required reading for everybody interested in Cavendish, and in the history of early modern philosophy more generally." -- Colin Chamberlain, Hypatia"Boyle's thorough and carefully argued volume, with its excellent and up-to-date bibliography and index, is a helpful introduction to Margaret Cavendish's philosophy and to the recent literature about it." -- Edith Dudley Sylla, Isis"If you want to get an overall grasp on what's going on in Cavendish's philosophy, this book is an excellent guide. While it engages throughout with existing literature, it also gives a comprehensive and clear overview, and finds in the notions of order and regularity a plausible framework within which to organize Cavendish's many and diverse views." -- Stewart Duncan, Journal of the History of Philosophy