A tractate is a written work dealing formally and systematically with a subject; the word derives from the Latin ''tractatus'', meaning
treatise.
One example of its use is in citing a section of the
Talmud, when the term ''
masekhet
A ( he, מַסֶּכֶת, Sephardic: , Ashkenazic: ; plural ) is an organizational element of Talmudic literature that systematically examines a subject, referred to as a tractate in English.
A tractate/ consists of chapters (; singular: or ...
'' () is used in conjunction with the name of the subject, for example,
Masekhet Berakhoth, which is relevant to agriculture and blessings.
Two further examples are the 1670 and '76 ''
Tractatus Theologico-Politicus'' by
Baruch Spinoza
Baruch (de) Spinoza (born Bento de Espinosa; later as an author and a correspondent ''Benedictus de Spinoza'', anglicized to ''Benedict de Spinoza''; 24 November 1632 – 21 February 1677) was a Dutch philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin, b ...
, and the 1921 ''
Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus'' by
Ludwig Wittgenstein.
See also
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Minor tractate
The minor tractates (Hebrew: מסכתות קטנות, ''masechtot qetanot'') are essays from the Talmudic period or later dealing with topics about which no formal tractate exists in the Mishnah. They may thus be contrasted to the Tosefta, whose t ...
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Tract (disambiguation)
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Tractatus (disambiguation)
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Treatise
References
{{reflist
Philosophical literature
Religious literature
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