Leibniz 1646 1716 Background v Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
Leibniz 1646 -1716
Background v Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was born in Leipzig, Germany, on July 1, 1646 v Leibniz was the son of a professor of moral philosophy v He was a personal aid to many noblemen. v Worked as legal advisor as well as official historian
Importance • Leibniz made many significant advances in symbolic logic. • Leibniz also tried to correct the errors of Cartesian metaphysics without throwing away its main structure.
Philosophy • Leibniz’s philosophy, found in his Monadology and Essays in Theodicy, are summarized into three main principles….
Philosophy • 1. The Principle of Identity • 2. The Principle of Sufficient Reason • 3. The Principle of Internal Harmony
Principle of Identity • Leibniz divided all propositions into 2 kinds, Analytic and Synthetic. Analytic Synthetic 1. True by definition 1. Not true by definition 2. Necessary 2. Not Necessary 3. A Priori 3. A Posteriori
Identity • Analytic Propositions were the positive counterpart of the principle of noncontradiction. • This states that the negation of every analytic sentence is a self-contradiction. • Analytic: – 1. All Bachelors are men – 2. 2+3= 5
Examples • Synthetic Propositions: • 1. The cat is on the mat • 2. In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue
Identity • Leibniz claimed that all Synthetic sentences were Actually Analytic. • Synthetic sentences were relative to time. (i. e. Fluffy the cat was on the sofa at time X. ) • From God’s point of view, all true sentences are necessarily true, even if it doesn’t seem to be for humans.
Identity • The characteristic of Fluffy being on the sofa at time X is as much of a characteristic as Fluffy being a cat. • This shows how Leibniz believed in a predestined world from God’s point of view.
Principle of Sufficient Reason • Leibniz believed that for anything to exist, there must be a reason why it exists and why it exists as it does. These reasons should also be open to human inquiry. • He claimed that this Principle was the Main Principle of Reality. Whoever rejected it was Irrational.
Example • If Fluffy the cat is on the sofa, then there must be a reason that it exists at all. • There must also be a reason why it exists on the sofa instead of on the roof.
Sufficient Reason • Leibniz applied this way of thinking to the universe. • Leibniz wondered why something existed rather than nothing. • Leibniz concluded that there must be an uncaused cause, an all-perfect God who’s being was necessary.
Sufficient Reason • According to Leibniz’s philosophy, one can prove the existence of God from rationality and the proposition that something exists instead of nothing.
Principle of Internal Harmony • Leibniz believed that If there is a God, He must be both rational and good. • God must also desire and be capable of creating the maximum existence possible: (Metaphysical Perfection) & maximum activity possible : ( Moral Perfection)
Internal Harmony • According to this, at creation, God created only the possibilities that would guarantee the maximum moral and metaphysical perfection. • Leibniz also based his claim that this is the best of all possible worlds off of this.
Example • Fluffy the cat MUST be on the sofa at 4: 20. • If Fluffy the cat is not on the sofa at 4: 20, then it is not Fluffy the cat.
Monads • Many philosophers following Descartes viewed reality as being made up of substances. • According to Leibniz, these were Monads: units of psychic force. • He believed that these were the simplest and realest “things” that existed.
Monads • Monads were not a material substance. • Everything was a product of a monad or group of monads. • He also believed that each monad is a mirror of the entire universe. • He believed that these monads (or groups of monads) were conscious. • Lastly, Leibniz believed that the clusters of monads that were free, were human beings.
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