Earth and Reveries
of WillTHE BACHELARD TRANSLATIONS
THE BACHELARD TRANSLATIONS
are the inspiration of Joanne H. Stroud, who in 1981 contracted with José Corti
to publish in English the untranslated works of Bachelard on the imagination.
Gaston Bachelard is acclaimed as one of the most significant modern French
thinkers. From 1929 to 1962 he authored twenty-three books addressing his dual
concerns, the philosophy of science and the analysis of the imagination of
matter. The influence of his thought can be felt in all disciplines of the
humanities - art, architecture, literature, language, poetics, philosophy, and
depth psychology. His teaching career included posts at the College de Bar-sur-Aube,
the University of Dijon, and from 1940 to 1962 the chair of history and
philosophy of science at the Sorbonne. One of the amphitheaters of the Sorbonne
is called "L'Amphi Gaston Bachelard," an honor Bachelard shared with Descartes
and Richelieu. He received the Grand Prix National Lettres in 1961—one of only
three philosophers ever to have achieved this honor. The influence of his
thought can be felt in all disciplines of the humanities—art, architecture,
literature, poetics, psychology, philosophy, and language.
Earth and Reveries
of Will
Although English translations of the other books in the series on the elements - air, water and fire - are available from Dallas Institute Publications, this is the first translation of his 1978 work on earth. Totaling 418 pages, this book is by far the weightiest, perhaps appropriately so, as earth itself is heavy. In Earth and Reveries of Will, Bachelard augments our understanding with vibrant images of earth in its initiating, active role. A companion volume, Earth and Reveries of Repose, will be the final work in this series.
by Gaston Bachelard
Trans.
ISBN: 0-911
005-29-3
ISBN:
0-911005-30-7
418 pages, indexed. Paper, $30.00
