Essay on Modern Philosophy Leibniz

Submitted By Bfulp1

Words: 466

Pages: 2

Open Document

Final causes are useful in physics * “The soul follows its own laws and the body likewise follows its own; and they agree by virtue of the preestablished harmony among all substances, because they are all representations of one self-same universe.” –Leibniz-- * “Souls act according to the laws of final causes through appetition, ends, and means. Bodies act according to the laws of efficient causes or of motions. And the two realms, that of efficient causes and that of final causes, are harmonious with one another.”—Leibniz— * The world has two realms: (1) bodily realm that is governed by efficient causation and (2) the realm of the souls that is governed by final causation. Any given substance is endowed with the powers of perception and appetite. Leibniz defines appetition as “the action of the internal principle which brings about the change or the passage from one perception to another.” Appetitions are responsible for the activity of substances. Since substances are governed by laws of final causes, it can be concluded that appetitions lead a substance to strive for certain future perceptual states (final causes). * “The present state of body is born from the preceding state through the laws of efficient causes; the present state of the soul is born from its preceding state through the laws of final causes. The one is the place of the series of motion, the other of the series of appetites; the one is passed from cause to effect, the other from end to means. And in fact, it may be said that the representation of the end in the soul is the efficient cause of the representation in the same soul of the means.” –Leibniz— * Leibniz suggests that final causes themselves produce future perceptions by way of efficient causation * Without final causes we can

Leibniz and the Problem of Evil Essay

philosophers have been discussing evil, how it exists in the world, and how this relates to God. The discussion on evil and its relations to us is not an easy one though. It is commonly called the problem of evil. The problem of evil in contemporary philosophy is generally regarded as an argument for atheism. The atheist contends that God and evil are incompatible, and given that evil clearly exists, God cannot exist. The problem is generally used to disprove God’s existence by showing an inconsistency…

Words 3707 - Pages 15

How Did Galileo Contribute To The Scientific Revolution

science into modern physics with the laws of motion, inspired from Kepler. He also worked alongside Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz to blossom and establish calculus. In Principia, he revealed the laws of motion as well as universal gravitation and eliminates doubt from the notion of a heliocentric universe. He also experimented in optics, building the first reflecting telescope. Newton is one of the most well-renowned, influential scientists of our time. He transformed and truly defined modern-day physics…

Words 447 - Pages 2

Dbq Essay On The Enlightenment

science should exist to further the glory and wisdom of God (Document 2). Though the religious leader’s eyes, science serves as just another creation of Christ. Sharing this viewpoint as well was German philosopher, Gottfried Leibniz. In his 1695 New System of Nature, Leibniz remarks how everything was put into place by God to be comprehended by the human mind and to further humanity (Document 12). This argument that science was just a benefactor of God was very influential and led to the progression…

Words 970 - Pages 4

Satire Exposed In Voltaire's Candide

and freedom of religion. While advocating these ideas in Candide, he also uses Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz’s idea of optimism as a way of stating that there is not optimism. Voltaire rejected Leibniz and optimism, but nonetheless, featured it in his work, in the form of Dr. Pangloss’s blind optimistic philosophy. Dr. Pangloss repeatedly states that every situation is “the best of all possible worlds” (Voltaire, 425). By stating that everything is for the best, Dr. Pangloss rejects responsibility for…

Words 1035 - Pages 5

Enlightenment Era Research Paper

scholars in the ancient enlightenment period; while some embrace the “moderns”- new way of…

Words 1003 - Pages 5

The Connection Between The Enlightenment And Thomas Hobbes

from the contemporary Renaissance world-view, which based its approach on the ideas of Aristotle and subsequent medieval philosophical and theological thinkers.1 It's methodology employed empiricism, logic, mathematics, reason, and the Mechanical Philosophy of cause and effect to explain the physical world, as opposed to the reliance on unreliable sensory knowledge and religious revelation which had dominated earlier thinking.2 As shall be shown, this empirical methodology was extremely influential…

Words 1288 - Pages 6

Hermeneutics Essay

HERMENEUTICS AS A METHOD OF TEXT-INTERPRETATION "Hermeneutics" means the theory of interpretation, i.e. thetheory of achieving an understanding of texts, utterances, and so on (it does notmean a certain twentieth-century philosophical movement). It is the art of interpreting. Hermeneutics proved to be much bigger than theology or legal theory. The comprehension of any written text requires hermeneutics; reading a literary text is as much a hermeneutic act as interpreting law or Scripture. Without…

Words 3987 - Pages 16

John Locke Innate Ideas

Evaluate the application of Locke’s critique of innate ideas with explicit reference to Descartes The debate surrounding innate ideas is not a recent controversy in philosophy as opinions have been known to differ on whether the mind is born with innate knowledge, or whether knowledge is learned. Seventeenth century philosophers John Locke and Rene Descartes held conflicting views on the topic of innatism, with Locke arguing against the idea and Descartes supporting it. This essay will explore…

Words 2030 - Pages 9

Steinberger's Argument That The Maxims Of Breaking Promises

This reading, according to Steinberger, is unpersuasive in a couple of ways. Firstly, Steinberger realizes that the moral law is not guided by the mere logical consistence. Steinberger reviews Harrison’s argument that the maxim of breaking promises , if universalized, undermine the systematic harmony of purposes. Since such result is based on experience of breaking promises. Kemp argues that Kant indicates self-contradiction in the CI is essentially logical. Steinberger takes Harrison’s point is…

Words 7178 - Pages 29

Muslim Spain (711-1492) Essay

Over a thousand years ago, Europe experienced one of its greatest periods of cultural enlightenment.Islam in Spain has had a fundamental presence in the culture and history of the nation. The religion was present inmodern Spanish soil from 711 until 1492 under the rule of the Arabs and Moors of al-Andalus.Islamic Spain was a multi-cultural mix of the people of three great monotheistic religions: Muslims,Christians, and Jews.For more than three centuries in Medieval Spain, Muslims, Jews and Christians…

Words 8947 - Pages 36