Publisher's Synopsis
Longdaedalus, a prehistory of the idea of genius, explores the various ways this language of ingenuity was defined, used, and manipulated between 1470 and 1750. By analyzing printed dictionaries and other lexical works across a range of languages-Latin, Italian, Spanish, French, English, German and Dutch-the authors reveal ways in which significant words produced meaning in history and found expression in natural philosophy, medicine, natural history, mathematics, mechanics, poetics and artistic theory.
