Criminal Law Library Blog
Introduction
Honoring Émilie du Châtelet: A Mind Ahead of Her Time grew out of my earlier poem, In Celebration of Émilie du Châtelet: A Truly Renaissance Woman. While both poems honor the same remarkable figure, they differ in purpose and tone. The first poem was written with public occasions in mind, shaped for oral recitation and offering, in essence, an outline of her extraordinary life, a concise tribute to her genius and achievements.
This new poem, however, seeks something more reflective. I think of it as a continuation rather than a mere revision, an effort to move beyond a broad sketch and invite deeper contemplation. Here, I aim to provide a richer sense of Émilie du Châtelet’s intellectual daring, her profound humanity, and her concern for women’s rights. Where the earlier poem celebrated her in bold strokes, this one lingers on the subtler dimensions of her life and character, offering a deeper basis for readers to pause and reflect on the legacy of this truly exceptional woman.
Honoring Émilie du Châtelet: A Mind Ahead of Her Time
David Badertscher
Born in Paris, winter’s child,
A noble girl, both bright and wild.
At Louis’ court, with poise and grace,
She learned to think, to ride, to race.
She mastered Latin, German, Greek—
Not just for show, but truth to seek.
She fenced, she danced, she read with flair—
A brilliant mind beyond compare.
She married young, yet chose to chart
A path through science, soul, and art.
Three children came, yet she would find
Another life, of greater mind.
With Voltaire, that flame of light,
She built a world in Cirey’s height.
A lab, a library, rooms to write,
Their days were thought, their nights were bright.
She sought Newton’s laws, his force, his frame,
But dared to question parts of his claim:
“Is matter moved by weight alone,
Or by a living force unknown?”
She dropped the spheres and watched the clay,
And showed the world a clearer way:
That energy is not just speed,
But mass times speed squared, thus decreed.
Not mv, as Newton named,
But half mv² must be claimed.
She argued well, with facts and fire,
Her insights reached where few aspire.
At life’s close, she took in hand
Newton’s Principia, vast and grand.
She made it French, precise, and clear,
With notes that scholars still revere.
But Émilie’s genius reached beyond—
She wrote of joy, of life’s sweet bond.
She asked why women’s minds were chained,
And called for learning unrestrained.
“Let us be free to think, to know,
The mind’s a gift; it must be so.”
Her words, though whispered in her day,
Still speak to those who pave the way.
She paid her debts with wit and schemes,
Inventing futures out of dreams.
A proto-market, sharp and sly,
She kept her head, and held it high.
At forty-two, she bore once more,
A daughter, hope, but life ran short.
Yet in six days, though breath had fled,
Her legacy rose in her stead.
Émilie lives in every mind
That seeks the truth, and dares to find.
She spoke for women, bold and clear,
Insisting thought knows no frontier.
Her voice clarified the Newtonian claim,
And added depth to gravity’s domain.
Yet more than science marked her name,
Her heart sought joy, and justice’s flame.
Closing Reflection
Émilie du Châtelet’s life reminds us that true genius is not only measured by discovery, but also by the courage to question, to learn, and to demand that knowledge be shared by all. Her voice still speaks to every seeker of truth, and to every woman who dares to claim her rightful place in the world of ideas.