Ether

Use in the book

The force of communicating wisdom is compared with ether in amber: it makes itself felt without showing itself, unlike palpable earthly fire. The criticism of Descartes says his subtle matter is not subtle enough, offering filings and dust where air and ether would better satisfy imagination. Stars are also pictured as islands surrounded by air or ether. The word supports degrees of material subtlety, but the passages do not establish a single verified physical medium.

Places to read

1. I, p. 197, entry begun p. 196, no. 11, ¶3Ether in amber models an invisible yet effective communication.
2. I, p. 241, entry 5, ¶1Ether contrasts with the overly coarse matter attributed to Descartes.
3. I, p. 407, entry 5, ¶1Stars become islands in air or ether.

Translation in this edition

The English translation keeps “ether” and renders électre as “amber” in the first analogy. It does not recast the comparison as a modern electrical theory.

Ethereality

French: æthéréité.

Æthéréité becomes ethereality in the discussion of a highly finished work that otherwise remains outside the reader. Joubert allows that a thought may have such ethereality that it dematerializes its wording, overcoming the excessive solidity of form. The conditional exception matters: the property is not asserted of every perfect expression. The English translation also retains masculine ce mémoire as this memoir, rather than silently changing the object into memory.

Places to read: I, p. 202, entry 8, ¶1.