Antoine Le Grand

Antoine Le Grand (1629 – 7 August 1699) was a French Recollect and Cartesian philosopher. Born in Douai, Spanish Netherlands, he became a Franciscan Recollect friar and taught philosophy and divinity. He was sent on the English mission and resided in Oxfordshire, where he tutored in the family of Henry Fermor. Le Grand's advocacy of Cartesianism faced opposition from Samuel Parker. He engaged in metaphysical controversies with John Sergeant and was elected provincial of his order shortly before his death. Le Grand argued against animal rights, defending the Cartesian view of animals as machines in his work 'Dissertatio de carentia sensus et cognitionis in brutis'. He authored 'An Entire Body of Philosophy', which presented Cartesianism in a scholastic scheme and is considered a significant exposition marking the close of the Cartesian era. He aimed to make Cartesianism more accessible to traditionalists, living a studious and retired life.