Throughout the reading we have done for Margaret Cavendish’s “The Blazing World”, it struck me how much of the science that was talked about in the story seemed strange and fantastical. On the one hand, I know that this story was written in a different time, so there may be elements of science that were related in the story that comes close to the real-world beliefs of the time. But I also know that Margaret Cavendish was making fun of those scientific beliefs a lot of the time too, so I have no idea what elements of the science in the story people in that day and age actually believed and what Cavendish was mocking or making up to make the world she was building a magical and fantastical place, like Gwen talked about in their post. Like the sun stone thing. That seems like something that is totally made up, but off the top of my head, I can’t actually be sure of that.
“Others again said, This opinion could not stand with reason; for Fire being a destroyer of all things, the Sun-stone after this manner would burn up all the near adjoining Bodies: Besides, said they, Fire cannot subsist without fuel; and the Sunstone having nothing to feed on, would in a short time consume it self;…”
Cavendish , Margaret. “The Blazing World (1668) – Scholarly Edition.” Digital Cavendish Project, 16 Apr. 2019, http://digitalcavendish.org/complete-works/the-blazing-world-1668/.
Aside from the maggots coming from cheese thing. I know they believed that one.
“…Also Nits, Snails, and Maggots, as well as those that are generated out of Cheese and Fruits, as those that are produced out of Flesh, had no blood:…”
Cavendish , Margaret. “The Blazing World (1668) – Scholarly Edition.” Digital Cavendish Project, 16 Apr. 2019, http://digitalcavendish.org/complete-works/the-blazing-world-1668/.
It is interesting to think about, because those that lived in the same time period as Cavendish could probably tell the difference very easily if they had an education, whereas I would have to do hours and hours of research to decifer it, and I’m sure there are things I still wouldn’t get. It maked me think about how easily history can be lost, if the people writing that history down don’t think specific pieces of information are worth recording, such as information they believe to be common knowledge that eventually ceases to be common knowledge.
