self-motionn.
/ˌsɛlfˈməʊʃn/, U.S. /ˌsɛlfˈmoʊʃ(ə)n/ Motion produced by the inherent power of the person, object, etc., that moves, rather than by the action of external forces. Also in philosophical contexts: voluntary or spontaneous action; will. Cf. self-movement n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > [noun] > self-movement
self-moving1570
self-motion1584
autokinesy1678
self-movement1700
spontaneity1721
1584 R. Eden tr. M. Cortés Arte Navigation (new ed.) ii. v. f. 29 Accordyng to her selfe motion, she [sc. the Moone] maketh her course in 27 dayes & almost 8 houres.
a1620 M. Fotherby Atheomastix (1622) Pref. sig. A3 Ascribing that his inclination, not vnto his owne selfe-motion; but vnto Gods prouidence.
1677 T. Gale Court of Gentiles: Pt. IV i. iii. 99 By how much the more spontaneous..the self-motion is, by so much the more free it is judged to be.
1715 G. Cheyne Philos. Princ. Relig. (ed. 2) i. ii. 10 Matter is not endow'd with Self-motion.
1788 T. Taylor Diss. Platonic Doctr. Ideas in tr. Proclus Philos. & Math. Comm. I. p. xiii A self-motive nature, which is nothing besides self-motion, is the cause of motion to all things.
1836 T. Roscoe Tourist in Spain: Andalusia iii. 89 The silver custodia, containing the sacred host..is moved by sixteen men, who, to give it the appearance of self-motion, are also concealed.
1885 N. Amer. Rev. Feb. 166 Sin is the most spontaneous of self-motion.
1908 Monist 18 206 How can life which is possessed of the faculty of self-motion originate from a world of inert matter?
1951 Jrnl. Hist. Ideas 12 186 A absolute indwelling power of self-motion animating the body like a soul.
2002 J. Seifert in P. Taboada et al. Person, Society & Value 123 Freedom..was recognized already by the ancients and particularly by Kant as an archetype of self-motion.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, January 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1584