Nourse, Timothy (c.1636–1699)

A Discourse Upon the Nature and Faculties of Man

London

Printed for Jacob Tonson

1686, 1689, 1697

"Let us but consider a little the Receptacles of Images, the Regions of Imagination, the curious formation in all the Instruments of Sense; to which we may add the activity and subtlety of the Spirits, the delicate Contexture of the Nerves, the various Articulations of the Voice, the Harmony of Features, together with the proportion of Members in a humane Body, any one of which Considerations is sufficient to engross the Study of ones whole Life, and is many times the subject of a Volume."

First for his Body, and the Generation of it. 'Tis certain that humane Race is propagated by the same way as that of bruit Animals. It would be a laborious, tho not a tedious Curiosity to trace Nature in its several advances from the imperfect state of an Embryon, to that of a mature Of-spring, contained in a just and full formation of all its Parts. But 'tis Entertainment sufficient for our present Thoughts, if we consider the great variety of Parts which serve for the Constitution of a humane Body: Some are useful for Life, others for Nutrition, others again for Motion. Let us but consider a little the Receptacles of Images, the Regions of Imagination, the curious formation in all the Instruments of Sense; to which we may add the activity and subtlety of the Spirits, the delicate Contexture of the Nerves, the various Articulations of the Voice, the Harmony of Features, together with the proportion of Members in a humane Body, any one of which Considerations is sufficient to engross the Study of ones whole Life, and is many times the subject of a Volume.
(pp. 2-3)

Container::Receptacles Geography::Regions Machine::Instruments

Reading in ECCO-TCP

3 editions in ODNB, 2 found in ESTC (1686, 1689, 1697).

See Timothy Nourse, A Discourse Upon the Nature and Faculties of Man in Several Essayes With Some Considerations of Humane Life (London: Printed for Jacob Tonson at the Judge’s Head in Chancery-Lane, near Fleet-street, 1686). <Link to ESTC><Link to EEBO-TCP>

03/11/2016