List of Works By Joseph Priestley

List Of Works By Joseph Priestley

Joseph Priestley (1733–1804), was a British natural philosopher, Dissenting clergyman, political theorist, theologian, and educator. He is best known for his discovery, simultaneously with Antoine Lavoisier, of oxygen gas.

A member of marginalized religious groups throughout his life and a proponent of what was called "rational Dissent," Priestley advocated religious toleration and equal rights for Dissenters. He argued for extensive civil rights in works such as the important Essay on the First Principles of Government, believing that individuals could bring about progress and eventually the Millennium; he was the foremost British expounder of providentialism. Priestley also made significant contributions to education, publishing, among other things, The Rudiments of English Grammar, a seminal work on English grammar. In his most lasting contributions to education, he argued for the benefits of a liberal arts education and of the value of the study of modern history. In his metaphysical works, Priestley "attempt to combine theism, materialism, and determinism," a project that has been called "audacious and original."

Throughout his life, Priestley was known not only as a political and theological controversialist but also as a natural philosopher. His scientific reputation rested on his writings on electricity, his invention of soda water, and his discovery of 10 previously unknown "Airs" (gases), that he reported about from 1774-1786 in a giant book of 6 volumes: Experiments and Observations on Different Kinds of Air. The most important of these newly discovered airs, was named by Priestley as "dephlogisticated air" (oxygen). But Priestley's determination to reject Lavoisier's "new chemistry" and to cling to phlogiston theory left him isolated within the scientific community.

This list classifies all of the works by Priestley. It is taken from Ronald E. Crook's A Bibliography of Joseph Priestley 1733-1804 (unless otherwise noted) and it follows very closely his generic subdivisions. All texts are by Priestley unless otherwise noted and only the first English language editions of the texts are listed below. The dash at the beginning of each entry below is a shorthand for the author's name, Joseph Priestley, consistent with standard bibliographic custom.