CAMPAILLA, TOMMASO. - Naturalist and philosopher, b. at Modica (Ragusa) in 1668, d. there in 1740.

Largely self-taught in various respects, he studied at the University of Catania. He was in contact with Berkeley, who called him «vir doctissimus» and from whom he drew «clarissimos ingenii fructus» (Letter from Messina 1718, and from London 1723: published in the Vita prefixed to the Adamo), and was a friend of L. Muratori, who described him as «Christian and Italian Lucretius» (Letter to Ceva and to Prescimone, ibid.) and invited him to occupy a chair at the University of Padua.

He wrote on scientific subjects, criticizing several doctrines of Newton (Considerazioni sulla fisica di I. Newton, Milan 1710). In philosophy he followed Descartes, though modifying some of his doctrines, such as that of the relations between body and soul. In general he attempted the reconciliation of Descartes with Scholasticism (cf. the philosophical poem: Adamo ovvero il mondo creato, Syracuse 1783).

Bibliography2 works

BIBL.: A. Grammatico, T. C., filosofo cartesiano, in Acta II Congressus Thomistici internationalis, Turin 1936, p. 150 ff.; S. Scimè, Indagini sul pensiero del Risorgimento, Rome 1949, passim, and especially part 1, ch. 2.

Salvatore Scimè

@incollection{ec3_campailla_tommaso, author = {Scimé, Salvatore}, title = {Campailla, tommaso}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {III}, pages = {444--445}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1949}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/campailla-tommaso} }

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Campailla, Tommaso

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