Skip to content
Man a MachineJulien Offray de La Mettrie

Man a Machine

by OpenStories

Original author: Julien Offray de La Mettrie

CompletedPublished Updated

"Man a Machine" by Julien Offray de La Mettrie is a work of materialist philosophy first published in 1747. Extending Descartes' view of animals as automatons, La Mettrie argues that humans are also machines. He rejects the existence of a soul separate from matter, demonstrating how physical conditions—sleep, nutrition, drugs—directly affect what we call the mind. This controversial work denies dualism and proposes that body and soul are inseparably one.

Man a Machine, by Julien Offray de La Mettrie. Republished by OpenStories from Project Gutenberg eBook #52090.

  • 55,470words
  • 12chapters
  • 0stars
  • 0bookmarks
  • 0hits
Start reading

12 Chapters

  1. 1.Preface (1)8,867 words
  2. 2.Preface (2)8,895 words
  3. 3.Preface (3)8,876 words
  4. 4.Preface (4)8,822 words
  5. 5.Preface (5)4,284 words
  6. 6.Chapter II: Concerning Matter339 words
  1. 7.Chapter III: Concerning the Extension of Matter395 words
  2. 8.Chapter V: Concerning the Moving Force of Matter862 words
  3. 9.Chapter VI: Concerning the Sensitive Faculty of Matter501 words
  4. 10.Appendix: Outlines and Notes (1)8,796 words
  5. 11.Appendix: Outlines and Notes (2)3,781 words
  6. 12.Book II: , Chap. I1,052 words