Abstract

Without doubt the Galileo affair is one of the most studied events in the history of Western culture. The past four centuries have produced vast amounts of commentaries, countless interpretations and evaluations advanced by physicists, astronomers, theologians, philosophers, churchmen, historians, and even playwrights. Although the literature on the original affair is enormous, the story of the aftermath, says Finocchiaro, has never been told: “The reflective commentary has never been systematically examined, and the subsequent controversy has never been anchored in the textual sources.”