William Coward (1657?–1725) was an English physician, controversial writer, and poet. He is now remembered for his sceptical writings on the

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

, which

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

condemned as

blasphemous Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religiou ...

and ordered to be burned in his presence.

Life

He was born at

Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...

in 1656 or 1657. His mother was sister of

John Lamphire John Lamphire M.D. (1614–1688) was an English academic, who became a physician after being ejected from his college fellowship. He was later Camden Professor of Ancient History, and principal of Hart Hall, Oxford. Life He was son of George Lamp ...

, principal of

Hart Hall, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main gate to the Bodleian Library. The colleg ...

. In May 1674 Coward was admitted as a commoner of Hart Hall; and in 1675 a scholar of

Wadham College Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

. He proceeded B.A. in 1677, and in January 1679-1680 was elected fellow of

Merton College Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, ch ...

. In 1682 he published a Latin version of

John Dryden '' John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the per ...

's ''

Absalom and Achitophel ''Absalom and Achitophel'' is a celebrated satirical poem by John Dryden, written in heroic couplets and first published in 1681. The poem tells the Biblical tale of the rebellion of Absalom against King David; in this context it is an allego ...

'' (1681). It was eclipsed by a contemporary version published by

Francis Atterbury Francis Atterbury (6 March 1663 – 22 February 1732) was an English man of letters, politician and bishop. A High Church Tory and Jacobite, he gained patronage under Queen Anne, but was mistrusted by the Hanoverian Whig ministries, and ban ...

, and Coward was ridiculed. In 1683 Coward became M.A., in 1685 M.B., and in 1687 M.D. He practised in

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

; and in 1693 or 1694 settled in Lombard Street, London, having to leave Northampton in consequence of immorality, according to Thomas Hearne. Coward left London about 1705, and in 1718 was residing at Ipswich, whence in 1722 he wrote to Sir Hans Sloane, offering to submit an epitaph upon the Duke of Marlborough to the duchess, who was said to have offered 500l. for such a performance. He was admitted a candidate of the

College of Surgeons The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations a ...

on 5 July 1695, and remained in that position till 1725, when the absence of his name from the lists proves that he must have been dead.

Controversial writings

In 1702 Coward published, under the pseudonym "Estibius Psychalethes", ''Second Thoughts concerning Human Soul, demonstrating the notion of human soul as believed to be a spiritual, immortal substance united to a human body to be a plain heathenish invention ... the ground of many absurd and superstitious opinions, abominable to the reformed churches and derogatory in general to true Christianity.'' His argument was possibly suggested by

John Locke John Locke (; 29 August 1632 – 28 October 1704) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism ...

's speculation as to the possibility that a power of thinking might be 'superadded' to matter. He maintains, partly upon scriptural arguments, that there is no such thing as a separate soul, but that immortal life will be conferred upon the whole man at the resurrection. Replies were made in William Nichols's ''Conference with a Theist'', John Turner's ''Vindication of the Separate Existence of the Soul'', and John Broughton's ''Psychologia''. Locke, in letters to Anthony Collins, speaks contemptuously both of the ''Psychologia'' and of Coward's next work, ''The Grand Essay; or a Vindication of Reason and Religion against Impostures of Philosophy'', to which was appended an ''Epistolary reply'' to the ''Psychologia''. After the publication of this, a complaint was made in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

, 10 March 1704. A committee was appointed to examine Coward's books. Coward was called to the bar and professed his readiness to recant anything contrary to religion or morality. The house voted that the books contained offensive doctrines, and ordered them to be burnt by the

common hangman An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who executes a sentence of capital punishment on a legally condemned person. Scope and job The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorising or orderin ...

. The proceeding increased the notoriety of Coward's books; and in the same year he published another edition of the ''Second Thoughts''. In 1706 (apparently) appeared ''The Just Scrutiny; or a serious enquiry into the modern notions of the soul''.

Henry Dodwell Henry Dodwell (October 16417 June 1711) was an Anglo-Irish scholar, theologian and controversial writer. Life Dodwell was born in Dublin in 1641. His father, William Dodwell, who lost his property in Connacht during the Irish rebellion, was ...

's ''Epistolary Discourse'', &c. in support of the natural

mortality of the soul Christian mortalism is the Christian belief that the human soul is not naturally immortal and may include the belief that the soul is “sleeping” after death until the Resurrection of the Dead and the Last Judgment, a time known as the int ...

, appeared in 1706, and led to a controversy with

Samuel Clarke Samuel Clarke (11 October 1675 – 17 May 1729) was an English philosopher and Anglican cleric. He is considered the major British figure in philosophy between John Locke and George Berkeley. Early life and studies Clarke was born in Norwich, ...

and Anthony Collins. Coward distinguishes his own position from Dodwell's and attacks Clarke. In 1706 Coward also published his ''Ophthalmoiatria'', chiefly medical, but in which he ridicules the

Cartesian Cartesian means of or relating to the French philosopher René Descartes—from his Latinized name ''Cartesius''. It may refer to: Mathematics *Cartesian closed category, a closed category in category theory *Cartesian coordinate system, modern ...

notion of an immaterial soul residing in the

pineal gland The pineal gland, conarium, or epiphysis cerebri, is a small endocrine gland in the brain of most vertebrates. The pineal gland produces melatonin, a serotonin-derived hormone which modulates sleep, sleep patterns in both circadian rhythm, circ ...

Sir Hans Sloane Sir Hans Sloane, 1st Baronet (16 April 1660 – 11 January 1753), was an Irish physician, naturalist, and collector, with a collection of 71,000 items which he bequeathed to the British nation, thus providing the foundation of the British Mu ...

corrected the proofs, and that in spite of Sloane's remonstrances Coward declined to conceal his opinions.

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish Satire, satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whig (British political party), Whigs, then for the Tories (British political party), Tories), poe ...

and other contemporaries frequently ridicule Coward in company with

John Toland John Toland (30 November 167011 March 1722) was an Irish people, Irish rationalist philosopher and freethought, freethinker, and occasional satirist, who wrote numerous books and pamphlets on political philosophy and philosophy of religion, whi ...

, Collins, and other

deist Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin '' deus'', meaning "god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge, and asserts that empirical reason and observation ...

Other works

Coward published two poetical works, ''The Lives of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, an heroic poem'' (1705), which seems to have disappeared; and ''Licentia Poetica discussed ... to which are added critical observations on . . . Homer, Horace, Virgil, Milton, Cowley, Dryden, &c.'' (1709).

Commendatory verse The epideictic oratory, also called ceremonial oratory, or praise-and-blame rhetoric, is one of the three branches, or "species" (eidē), of rhetoric as outlined in Aristotle's ''Rhetoric'', to be used to praise or blame during ceremonies. Origin ...

s by Aaron Hill and

John Gay John Gay (30 June 1685 – 4 December 1732) was an English poet and dramatist and member of the Scriblerus Club. He is best remembered for ''The Beggar's Opera'' (1728), a ballad opera. The characters, including Captain Macheath and Polly Peac ...

are prefixed. It is a didactic performance in the taste of the day, with an apparatus of preface, notes, and political appendix. His medical works are : 1. ''De Fermento volatili nutritivo conjectura rationis'', &c. (1695)). 2. ''Alcali Vindicatium'' (1698). 3. ''Remediorum Medicinalium Tabula'' (1704). 4. ''Ophthalmoiatria'', &c. (1706).

Life

Controversial writings

Other works

Notes

References

Further reading