E pur si muove!
Encyclopedia
"Eppur si muove" (epˈpur si ˈmwɔːve) is an Italian
phrase meaning "And yet it moves" said to have been uttered by the Italian mathematician, physicist and philosopher Galileo Galilei
after being forced to recant in 1633, before the Inquisition
, his belief that the Earth
moves around the Sun
.
Some historians believe this might have happened instead upon his transfer from house arrest under the watch of Archbishop Ascanio Piccolomini to that of someone less favorable towards his views, near Florence.
There is no contemporary evidence that Galileo uttered this expression at his trial; it would certainly have been highly imprudent for him to have done so. The earliest biography of Galileo, written by his disciple Vincenzio Viviani, does not mention this phrase, and depicts Galileo as having sincerely recanted. The legend is first recorded by Giuseppe Baretti in his work Italian Library in 1757 (124 years after the supposed utterance) and became widely published in Querelles Littéraires (1761).
In 1911, the line was found on a Spanish painting owned by a Belgian family, dated 1643 or 1645. The painting is obviously ahistorical, because it depicts Galileo in a dungeon, but nonetheless proves that some variants of the "Eppur si muove" legend had been circulating for over a century before it was published, perhaps even in his own lifetime.
In 1992, Pope John Paul II
called the Church's position regarding Galileo a "tragic mutual incomprehension".
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
phrase meaning "And yet it moves" said to have been uttered by the Italian mathematician, physicist and philosopher Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei , was an Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the Scientific Revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations and support for Copernicanism...
after being forced to recant in 1633, before the Inquisition
Inquisition
The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
, his belief that the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
moves around the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
.
Some historians believe this might have happened instead upon his transfer from house arrest under the watch of Archbishop Ascanio Piccolomini to that of someone less favorable towards his views, near Florence.
There is no contemporary evidence that Galileo uttered this expression at his trial; it would certainly have been highly imprudent for him to have done so. The earliest biography of Galileo, written by his disciple Vincenzio Viviani, does not mention this phrase, and depicts Galileo as having sincerely recanted. The legend is first recorded by Giuseppe Baretti in his work Italian Library in 1757 (124 years after the supposed utterance) and became widely published in Querelles Littéraires (1761).
In 1911, the line was found on a Spanish painting owned by a Belgian family, dated 1643 or 1645. The painting is obviously ahistorical, because it depicts Galileo in a dungeon, but nonetheless proves that some variants of the "Eppur si muove" legend had been circulating for over a century before it was published, perhaps even in his own lifetime.
In 1992, Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
called the Church's position regarding Galileo a "tragic mutual incomprehension".
Cultural references
- In the 19th century Spanish realist novel Fortunata y JacintaFortunata y JacintaFortunata y Jacinta , was written by Benito Pérez Galdós in 1887. It is, together with Leopoldo Alas y Ureña's La Regenta , one of the most popular and representative novels of Spanish literary realism. Born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, the author went to Madrid, the capital, to...
by Benito Pérez GaldósBenito Pérez GaldósBenito Pérez Galdós was a Spanish realist novelist. Considered second only to Cervantes in stature, he was the leading Spanish realist novelist....
, the character Aparisi uses the phrase "eppur si muove" erroneously, thinking it means "por si acaso" (just in case). - In Terry Pratchett'sTerry PratchettSir Terence David John "Terry" Pratchett, OBE is an English novelist, known for his frequently comical work in the fantasy genre. He is best known for his popular and long-running Discworld series of comic fantasy novels...
DiscworldDiscworldDiscworld is a comic fantasy book series by English author Sir Terry Pratchett, set on the Discworld, a flat world balanced on the backs of four elephants which, in turn, stand on the back of a giant turtle, Great A'Tuin. The books frequently parody, or at least take inspiration from, J. R. R....
novel Small Gods the phrase "the turtle moves" is used as a rallying cry by an organization of freethinkingFreethoughtFreethought is a philosophical viewpoint that holds that opinions should be formed on the basis of science, logic, and reason, and should not be influenced by authority, tradition, or other dogmas...
philosophers fighting a dogmatic establishment. - In Teilhard de ChardinPierre Teilhard de ChardinPierre Teilhard de Chardin SJ was a French philosopher and Jesuit priest who trained as a paleontologist and geologist and took part in the discovery of both Piltdown Man and Peking Man. Teilhard conceived the idea of the Omega Point and developed Vladimir Vernadsky's concept of Noosphere...
's book The Future of Man, this phrase is used at the beginning of the chapter. - The GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
symphonic metal band HaggardHaggard (band)Haggard is a German symphonic metal musical group founded in 1991. The group combines classical music and early music with doom metal.-Background:...
's concept album Eppur Si MuoveEppur Si MuoveEppur si muove is the third full-length album by the German symphonic metal band Haggard. It was released on April 26, 2004 by Drakkar Entertainment....
, is based on Galileo's biography. - The third album by American rock band My Morning JacketMy Morning JacketMy Morning Jacket is an American rock band from Louisville, Kentucky.The band consists of Jim James , Tom 'Two-Tone Tommy' Blankenship , Patrick Hallahan , Carl Broemel , and Bo Koster .-History:My Morning Jacket was...
was entitled It Still MovesIt Still MovesIt Still Moves is the third album rock band My Morning Jacket. The album garnered positive reviews and often acclaimed as the bands best work along side with At Dawn. The song "Run Thru" is included in Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitar Songs"...
. - In a fourth-season episode of the television series The X-FilesThe X-FilesThe X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
, entitled "Terma", E PUR SI MUOVE appears in the opening credits. It replaces the usual sentence, THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE. - The sixteenth episode of the fifth season of the television series The West Wing is titled "Eppur Si MuoveEppur Si Muove (The West Wing)"Eppur Si Muove" is the sixteenth episode of The West Wings fifth season, and episode 104 from the start. It originally aired on NBC March 3, 2004. Events centre on a controversy relating to the National Institutes of Health, involving President Bartlet’s middle daughter Ellie...
". - The title of the video game And Yet It MovesAnd Yet It MovesAnd Yet It Moves is a single-player puzzle platform game developed by independent developer Broken Rules. The game was released on personal computer and WiiWare platforms, and the name itself is an English translation of Galileo Galilei's famous remark E pur si muove!-Gameplay:And Yet It Moves is...
, where the central mechanic is rotating the game world about the player character, is a reference to this phrase. - The song Albo-kalteak by basque rockRock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Berri TxarrakBerri TxarrakBerri Txarrak is a Basque rock power trio whose songs are sung in Basque. It was founded in 1994 in Lekunberri, Navarre, Spain.-History:...
includes the line "eppur si muove". - The first track on the album A posteriori by the musical project EnigmaEnigma (musical project)Enigma is an electronic musical project founded in Germany by Michael Cretu, David Fairstein and Frank Peterson in 1990. The Romanian-born Cretu conceived the Enigma project while working in Germany, but has based his recording studio A.R.T. Studios in Ibiza, Spain, since the early 1990s until May...
is called "Eppur Si Muove".