Kepler's Use of Sexual Metaphor

Like Bacon, Kepler often views the pursuit of knowledge in metaphorical terms of sexuality.  While Bacon uses sexual metaphor to describe the implementation of his ideal science, Kepler makes use of such metaphor to describe his personal, mathematical quest to explain the movements of the heavenly bodies.  "Kepler views his crescendo of errors and false paths as an extended arousal, whose agonizing delay turns pain into superlative pleasure.  This unambiguous metaphor clarifies that his 'seizing' is not a rape or violation, but rather the fulfillment of Nature's seductive teasing" (Pesic 111).

It is apparent that both these men use sexual metaphor to describe their scientific and mathematical interactions with nature.  Furthermore, it is interesting to note that while Bacon's use of metaphor incorporates traditional, distinct feminine and masculine sexual roles and qualities, Kepler's  is much more unconventional and amorphous:  "Whatever joys or sorrows he knew in married life, in his work Kepler mixes masculine and feminine imagery; the fluidity of his desire cannot be confined to conventional sexual roles any more than Mars's orbit conforms to ordinary preconceptions" (112).

In this way, it seems that Kepler's bold, unconventional use of sexual metaphor underscores the pioneering quality of his theories of celestial motion.  As Pesic says, "Kepler uses this rich mixture of imagery in order to engage us in a new domain of desire that is informed by the old, but not limited by it" (112).