Individuation in Margaret Cavendish

From the Whole to the Parts and their Causality

Abstract

For Cavendish, the theory of individuation consists of a causal process in which infinite matter herself individuates into infinite parts through her own movement. This paper analyzes the process of individuation in her book Philosophical Letters (1664). To do so, the study is divided into two parts. First, we characterize infinite matter, her parts, and their mereological relationship. Then, we examine the role of infinite matter in the individuation of creatures, that is, of individuals, as a cause-effect relationship. The hypothesis is that this process of individuation establishes a whole-parts relationship in which the whole serves as the prime cause without implying that the parts cannot act as efficient or occasional causes, and therefore they have causal agency.