Preface; List of illustrations; Introduction; 1. Other atomists, other
skeptics, and other Epicureans: the problem of determining the context of
Gassendi's career; Part I. Humanist Historiography: 2. Refuting Aristotle
is not enough: how to acquire the skills of a French humanist; 3.
Gassendi's Life of Peiresc: the humanist's unattainable goal of writing a
universal history; 4. The growth of Gassendi's Epicurean project: from
biography and commentary to a history of philosophy; Part II. Physics and
the History of Philosophy: 5. Unrecognized cultural baggage: the
incoherence of contemporary debates about atoms; 6. Uncertainties of
observation and explanation: the role of optical anomalies in astronomy; 7.
Skepticism is based on bad history: Gassendi interprets Epicurus' arguments
concerning the existence and qualities of atoms; 8. Epicurus' conception of
proof and Gassendi's historical justification of an atomist metaphysics and
physics; 9. Between culture and nature: was Gassendi a historian, a
scientist, an empiricist?; List of abbreviations used in the notes; Notes;
Index of names.
