COKE, Zachary.

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The Art of Logick; or the Entire Body of Logick In English. First edition of one of the earliest books on logic printed in English, published during the Protectorate and dedicated to the "generalissimo" Cromwell. Although Latin remained the official language of university logic, the first half of the 17th century saw several attempts to present the subject to a non-scholarly, English-speaking audience. In the epistle dedicatory, Coke (bap. 1618) observes that "there cannot be a greater Prop... to the black Monarchy of the Prince of darkness, then the Engrossments and Enclosure of the Sciences (which this lays open)" (p. [xiv]), and clarifies that he intends to provide the common people with the tools to argue their own cases, and to refute the ignorant fallacies then circulating. Little is known about Zachary Coke beyond the fact that he was admitted to Gray's Inn in 1649, and his use of direct quotations from Aristotle in Greek suggests a high degree of learning. The authorship of this work has sometimes been attributed to the theologian Henry Ainsworth (1571-1622), on the basis of an advertisement inserted into the second edition of 1657, but most resources, including ODNB, continue to cite Coke as the author. Coke's treatment of logic blends Aristotelian and Ramist ideas, angled primarily towards Christian subject matter.Two editions with a Robert White/1654 imprint have been identified. This edition is identified by the vertical half-title and the lack of floral ornament

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