Philosophy Cudworth was a member of the Cambridge Platonists, a group of English seventeenth-century thinkers associated with the University of Cambridge who were stimulated by Plato's teachings but also were aware of and influenced by Descartes, Hobbes, Bacon, Boyle and Spinoza. The other important philosopher of this group was Henry More (1614–1687). More held that spiritual substance or mind controlled inert matter. Out of his correspondence with Descartes, he developed the idea that everything, whether material or non, had extension, an example of the latter being space, which is infinite (Newton) and which then is correlative to the idea of God (set out in his Enchiridion metaphysicum 1667). In developing this idea, More also introduced a causal agent between God and substance, or Nature, in his Hylarchic Principle, derived from Plato's anima mundi or world soul, and the Stoic's pneuma, which encapsulates the laws of nature, both for inert and vital nature, and involves a sympathetic resonance between soul (psyche) and body (soma).
philosophy cudworth was a member of the cambridge platonists a group of english seventeenth-century thinkers associated with the university of cambridge who were stimulated by plato's teachings but also were aware of and influenced by descartes hobbes bacon boyle and spinoza the other important philosopher of this group was henry more (1614–1687) more held that spiritual substance or mind controlled inert matter out of his correspondence with descartes he developed the idea that everything whether material or non had extension an example of the latter being space which is infinite (newton) and which then is correlative to the idea of god (set out in his enchiridion metaphysicum 1667) in developing this idea more also introduced a causal agent between god and substance or nature in his hylarchic principle derived from plato's anima mundi or world soul and the stoic's pneuma which encapsulates the laws of nature both for inert and vital nature and involves a sympathetic resonance between soul (psyche) and body (soma)