Giordano Bruno: His Life and Thought
CHAPTER FOUR
FOOTNOTES
1 See App. I, 6-9.
2 Called in later works Philotheo.
3 Cf. p. 35.
4 See p. 28 seq.
5 Cf. pp. 35-6.
6 Andreas Osiander (1498-1552), a Lutheran theologian and mathematician, was successively Professor of Hebrew at Nuremberg and of Theology at Königsberg. He risked his own position by advocating unpopular theological doctrine. But, entrusted with the publication of the work of Copernicus, of which the author had passed the proof-sheets on his death-bed, Osiander inserted a preface suggesting that Copernicus intended the work merely as a mathematical exposition and not as related to the facts of nature. Hence the indignation of Bruno.
7 For these subjects, cf. Aristotle, De coelo, I, 3. De coelo, 270b, 24 derives ether from [Greek] (ever-running). This derivation goes back to Plato, Cratylus, 410b. Cf. also [Greek] (to act as ambassador).
8 Dial. V, p. 115 (Gentile, Op. ital., I, 119; Lagarde, Op. ital., I, 189). The passage quoted from Aristotle is from Meteorologica, I, 14, 1-10. We might almost apply Bruno's words to himself!
9 Mrs. Linetta Richardson, former Professor of Italian in Birmingham University, has a translation of this work in preparation.
10 It is hard to choose the correct translation of the word principio which conveys the idea both of origin and of nature or essential principle. In Bruno's thought these two meanings were transfused. Florio gives for principio "beginning, ground, or chief original, race and stock of a thing, origin."
11 He is called in the first Dialogue "Philotheo" but is obviously the same charac-ter as Theophilo.
12 See above, pp. 38-9.
13 Cf. p. 39, n. 40. Matthew and Culpepper were among the five doctors (all either former or future Vice-Chancellors of the University) who welcomed a Laski to Oxford. Cf. Spampanato, Vita di Giordano Bruno (Messina, 1921), I, 340, 342; citing H. Languet, Arcana saeculi decimi sexti (Halle, 1699), I, 299 and II, 428-9. Tobie Matthew (1546-1628) "learned, eloquent and loved" as reported by a Wood, was at the time Dean of Christ Church. He became Bishop of Durham in 1595, and Archbishop of York in 1606. Martin Culpepper was Rector of New College 1573-99. He had been Dean of Chichester since 1577. Mario Nizzoli (1498-1566) was a very learned opponent of scholasticism. He published a Lexicon to Cicero and also De veris principiis et vera ratione philosophandi contra pseudo-philosophos (Parma, 1533), Libri IV, which was reprinted by Leibnitz.
14 See pp. 76 and 99. The name of David of Dinant is given in the "Argument," but in the text this belief is referred to its source in the Fons vitae of Avicebron. Like all his contemporaries, Bruno was of course not aware of the identity of Avicebron with the Spanish-Jewish philosopher Solomon ibn Gabirol (circ. 1021-circ, 1058).
15 Psalms CXXXIX, 12.
16 Cf. De vinculis in genere (Op. lat., III, 696), citing both David of Dinant and Avicebron. Cf. n. 14 above.
17 Cf. Dial. IV, pp. 99-115 (Gentile, Op. ital., I, 237-46; Lagarde, Op. ital., 267-76).
18 "Jove" (p. 120; Lagarde, Op. ital., p. 279). In the Argument, Bruno has "Jove as they call him" (p. 16; Lagarde, Op. ital., p. 207).
19 "Argument," pp. 16-17 (Gentile, Op. ital., I, 143; Lagarde, Op. ital., I, 207).
20 Dial. V, pp. 121, 124-26 (Gentile, Op. ital., I, 251, 253-54; Lagarde, Op. ital., I, 279, 281-82).
21 Dial. V, p. 131 (Gentile, Op. ital., I, 259; Lagarde, Op. ital., I, 285).
22 "Argument," pp. 17-18 (Gentile, Op. ital., I, 143-44; Lagarde, Op. ital., I, 207-8).
23 An initial difficulty confronts us as to the title of this work. In the first edition seen through the press by Bruno, the title occurs in two forms -- De l'infinito, universo et mondi, which we should render On the Infinite, the Universe and Worlds; and without the comma, De l'infinito universo et mondi, the form chosen here. The form chosen by us occurs on Bruno's first title-page and again at the end of the work. The comma is inserted in the Title on Fol. 1, where the work begins in Dialogo primo. Florio inserts the comma after universo when he lists this work among those he had read in order to compile his dictionary.
24 Cf. p. 39.
25 Cf. pp. 68, 71, 105.
26 Cf. PP. 31, 43; also p. 140.
27 Cf. pp. 26-7.
28 For convenience of reference, we will, in citing the Themes, give always the Dialogue number (with Part number, if any) as well as the Theme number.
29 Cf. Trans., p. 262, n. 27.
30 We give in the Translation references to the relevant passages of these works.
31 Cf. also Epitome of Dial. III.
32 Cf. p. 90, n. 121.
33 Cf. p. 114, nn. 34-7.
34 Bruno accidentally numbers this again as the seventh.
35 Continuing the error, this thesis is numbered as the eighth but in the answer it is called the ninth.
36 Continuing the error, this thesis is numbered as the tenth but it is answered as "your next."
37 Continuing the error, this thesis is called the tenth by Albertino. We number it 10 bis. as it is answered as the tenth. The numberings of these theses and of the answers are thus brought to correspond again.