Reviews

The Invention of Science: The Scientific Revolution from 1500 to 1750 by David Wootton

miguelf's review

3.0

This is a book which I wanted to like and enjoy more, but proved to be such a tedious grind to get through that it took away from what could have been something much more enjoyable. It’s not just that it has a ponderous approach to the topic, but the writing is somewhere between 19th century prose and high academic that deters from any actual pleasure that one might otherwise have had. I kept thinking that if I had been assigned this in a college course setting and been asked to parse out the author’s view of defining a “fact” that it would have been left me despairing. Occasionally there are some very interesting aspects of the development of science and how human’s thought processes developed over time and in the hands of a more approachable author this would definitely make for a much more satisfying read.

markp's review

5.0

I say this with the caveat that I have no background in the history of science. That said: this is essential reading. I fully grant some of the criticisms I've seen in other reviews. Wootton does rely overmuch on linguistic analyses, and he tends to hammer away at them for much longer than any reader is likely to want him to. He has a few too many axes to grind with other historians, and, if this can be leveled as a criticism, it took a while to be able to read the text because it is so densely foot- and endnoted that it can be distracting.

So why five stars, in spite of those issues? Simply put, Wootton made me think of science, history, and progress in a way that I never had before. Even if one can dispute certain sections, his theses are solid, his points well-argued, and his overall project admirable.