@article{ART003173029},
author={Ghim, Zae-young},
title={Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light},
journal={PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE},
issn={1975-1621},
year={2025},
number={47},
pages={81-110}
TY - JOUR
AU - Ghim, Zae-young
TI - Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light
JO - PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE
PY - 2025
VL - null
IS - 47
PB - Research Institute for East-West Thought
SP - 81
EP - 110
SN - 1975-1621
AB - This study examines Thomas Young's double-slit experiment and his exploration of light from the viewpoint of natural philosophy in historical context. By examining Goethe's Zur Farbenlehre, which criticized Newton's theory of light and color, I suggest that Goethe's scientific method was merely different from the mainstream, and that the “Newton vs. Goethe” dichotomy can be avoided by viewing the motivation for Goethe's pursuit of natural philosophy not in the narrow context of Newtonian physics, but as something more fundamental: a desire to understand the totality and dynamics of nature itself more clearly and with greater certainty. Young's purpose and motivation for his various explorations of light, including his double slit experiment, was not to provide an experimentum crucis to refute Newton's theory, but to establish a holistic and all-encompassing view on Nature. The reason why Young critically evaluated Goethe's Zur Farbenlehre was not because Goethe, a poet, inappropriately addressed issues of physics, but because Goethe's approach was different from his own trichromatic theory. Rather Young vigorously defended the holistic methods and attitudes prominent in Goethe's Naturphilosophie and used them as the basis for his own natural philosophy.
KW - Thomas Young;Newton-Goethe controversy;experimentum crucis;Zur Farbenlehre;trichromacy
DO -
UR -
ER -
Ghim, Zae-young. (2025). Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light. PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE, 47, 81-110.
Ghim, Zae-young. 2025, "Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light", PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE, no.47, pp.81-110.
Ghim, Zae-young "Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light" PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE 47 pp.81-110 (2025) : 81.
Ghim, Zae-young. Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light. 2025; 47 : 81-110.
Ghim, Zae-young. "Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light" PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE no.47(2025) : 81-110.
Ghim, Zae-young. Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light. PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE, 47, 81-110.
Ghim, Zae-young. Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light. PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE. 2025; 47 81-110.
Ghim, Zae-young. Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light. 2025; 47 : 81-110.
Ghim, Zae-young. "Thomas Young’s double-slit experiment and his natural philosophy of light" PHILOSOPHY·THOUGHT·CULTURE no.47(2025) : 81-110.
