FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   >>  
orks like unto those it came from, imprints the Characters of Man and Woman upon it: And that some have been able to engender in a double Capacity, as to have a Child with one Breast resembling that of a Woman, and the other that of a Man; but this Opinion is very fabulous, for the uniting Faculty, which is the Effect of the Soul, is not capable of making such very great Differences; and Generation being accomplish'd, thro' the Fermentation of the Seed only, it cannot separate their Actions after they are mix'd. Some Naturalists tell us, that where Nature design'd Seed in the Womb for a Male only, (as working up for the best, and aiming at the highest Perfection of its Workmanship) too much Cold and Moisture accidentally falling into the Work, before it is perfected in the Womb, at the same time there being too great a quantity of Seed and menstrous Blood, what was intended for Man in part degenerates, and renders the Infant of a double Sex or Nature, placing it in the middle of both Sexes, as seeming to participate of Male and Female. Others say. That Nature having always a particular care of the Propagation of Mankind, endeavours for the most part to produce Females: And thus we may observe, the Number of Men Hermaphrodites to exceed the Women ones, Nature having chalk'd out to the first the Lines of a Woman's privy Parts. To this Opinion it is objected, that Nature being nothing but the Power of God in the production of Creatures, it never works but according to his Orders upon the Matter that is given the Female; and of consequence Hermaphrodites depend more upon the Disposition of the Matter for Generation, than upon any previous Design of Nature. Some are of Opinion, that God having created Man and Woman, we have essentially within us a Faculty to become either the one Sex or the other; for which Reason it is no wonder if an Hermaphrodite is sometimes produc'd, since we are potentially so. This Notion is drawn from _Plato_; and though some part of the Scripture may at first seem to favour it, yet, strictly consider'd, one may find a quite different Sense; and this Opinion was condemn'd by Pope _Innocent_ III. The Ancients were of Opinion, that there is a certain Cell in the Womb of some Women, into which the Seed falling, when _Mercury_ and _Venus_, or _Mercury_ and _Luna_ are in Conjunction, an Hermaphrodite is engender'd; or that the Conjunction of _Mars_ and _Venus_ disposes the Matter that serves for t
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   >>  



Top keywords:

Nature

 

Opinion

 

Matter

 
Female
 
double
 

Mercury

 
Hermaphrodite
 

engender

 

Generation

 

Faculty


falling
 

Hermaphrodites

 

Conjunction

 

Design

 

Disposition

 
depend
 

previous

 

consequence

 

production

 
exceed

objected

 
created
 

Creatures

 

Orders

 

strictly

 

favour

 

disposes

 
condemn
 

Ancients

 

Innocent


Scripture

 

produc

 

Reason

 

serves

 

Notion

 

potentially

 

essentially

 

Infant

 

separate

 

Actions


Fermentation

 

Differences

 

accomplish

 

working

 

design

 

Naturalists

 
making
 

capable

 

imprints

 

Characters