The Collected Works of Thomas Cogan

The Treatise on the Passions and Affections of the Mind, in five volumes appearing between 1800 and 1813, is the most substantial production of the varied and interesting career of Dr. Thomas Cogan. Born in Rothwell, Northants in 1736, Cogan earned his MD from Leyden, having previously spent several years as a unitarian minister in Holland. His dissertation topic of 1767 - 'On the Influence of the Passions in causing and healing Diseases' - suggests that he had conceived an interest in matters of moral psychology at an early stage in life. This interest was put aside for many years, however, while he practiced as an obstetrician in Holland and London. During this time he achieved considerable fame for his efforts to introduce the English to Dutch techniques for reviving drowning victims. He and Dr. William Hawes co-founded the Royal Humane Society in 1774 to further this purpose. Contemporary estimates put the number of lives saved in the first few years of the RHS in the thousands. Cogan retired early from his prosperous medical practice, devoting himself for nearly forty years to the study of moral philosophy. His Treatise and Ethical Questions, along with a widely-read response