Leibniz (The Routledge Philosophers)

273 Pages·2005·0.83 MB·English

by  Nicholas Jolley

Leibniz
‘Jolley has done a fabulous job, and the result is perfectly suited for its
intended purpose and audience. The work is very clearly written; the
organization is excellent; and the coverage comprehensive. The needs of
students and beginners are indeed well-served here, but the result is not
bland.’
Vere Chappell, University of Massachusetts, USA
‘The best introduction available.’
Glenn Hartz, Ohio State University, USA
‘Reading this gave me great pleasure ... it is interesting, illuminating,
systematic, thorough and above all pleasantly, smoothly and accessibly
written. A splendid book.’
Roger Woolhouse, University of York, UK
‘An excellent work. It will clearly establish itself as the best introduction to
the thought of Leibniz, and I would recommend it to students wrestling
with this difficult philosopher for the first time.’
Brandon C. Look, University of Kentucky, USA
Routledge Philosophers
Edited by Brian Leiter
University of Texas, Austin
Routledge Philosophers is a major series of introductions to the great
Western philosophers. Each book places a major philosopher or thinker in
historical context, explains and assesses their key arguments, and
considers their legacy. Additional features include a chronology of major
dates and events, chapter summaries, annotated suggestions for further
reading and a glossary of technical terms.
An ideal starting point for those new to philosophy, they are also essential
reading for those interested in the subject at any level.
Hobbes A. P. Martinich
Locke E. J. Lowe
Hegel Frederick Beiser
Rousseau Nicholas Dent
Schopenhauer Julian Young
Freud Jonathan Lear
Forthcoming:
Spinoza Michael Della Rocca
Hume Don Garrett
Kant Paul Guyer
Fichte and Schelling Sebastian Gardner
Husserl David Woodruff Smith
Rawls Samuel Freeman
Nicholas Jolley
Leibniz
First published 2005
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2006.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.”
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
© 2005 Nicholas Jolley
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Leibniz / Nicholas Jolley.
p. cm.—(Routledge philosophers)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Leibniz, Gottfried Wilhelm, Freiherr von, 1646–1716. I. Title.
II. Series.
B2598.J57 2005
193—dc22 2004022912
ISBN 0–415–28337–X (hbk)
ISBN 0–415–28338–8 (pbk)
Acknowledgements viii
List of Abbreviations ix
Chronology xi
Introduction 1
Mirrors of God 2
The Project of Synthesis 6
A Systematic Philosopher? 9
Summary 11
Leibniz: Life and Works One 14
Early Years 15
Hanover: Position and Duties 18
Discourse on Metaphysics and Correspondence with Arnauld 19
The‘New System’ 21
Leibniz, Locke, and the New Essays on Human Understanding 23
TheEssays in Theodicy 25
TheMonadology and Related Writings 28
The Leibniz–Clarke Correspondence: the Quarrel
with the Newtonians 29
Conclusion 31
Summary 33
The Metaphysics of Substances: Unity and Activity Two 36
Unity: the Critique of Descartes 37
Activity: the Critique of Occasionalism 41
The Logicist Strategy 46
Causality and Creation 55
The Problem of Ontology 58
Summary 63
vi Contents
The Theory of Monads Three 66
The Properties of Monads 67
Leibniz, Spinoza, and Monads 71
The Status of Bodies 74
Corporeal Substance and the Vinculum Substantiale 81
Space, Time, and Monads 84
Summary 90
Mind, Knowledge, and Ideas Four 93
The Immaterial Mind 93
Mind, Body, and the Pre-established Harmony 99
The Case for Nativism (1): Innate Ideas 103
The Case for Nativism (2): Innate Knowledge 109
Dispositions and the Defence of Nativism 112
The Case for Unconscious Perceptions 118
Summary 121
Human and Divine Freedom Five 125
Background: Descartes and Spinoza 127
Freedom: the General Analysis 129
Contingency and Human Freedom 133
Contingency and Divine Freedom 142
Laws, Explanations, and Final Causes 147
Summary 152
The Problem of Evil Six 155
‘Epicurus’s Old Questions’ in a New Setting 156
The Best of All Possible Worlds 159
The Criteria of Value 161
The Kinds of Evils 166
Summary 173
Contents vii
Ethics and Politics Seven 176
Moral Psychology 177
The City of God 181
Justice 187
The Political Community 189
Leibniz’s Critique of Hobbes 194
Summary 198
Legacy and Influence Eight 201
The Reactions of Leibniz’s Contemporaries:
France and England 202
The Reaction Against Systems 205
Voltaire, Optimism, and Theodicy 209
Leibniz, Kant, and German Idealism 211
The Rediscovery of Leibniz 214
Summary 219
Glossary 223
Notes 231
Bibliography 235
Index 241
Acknowledgements
I am very grateful to Brian Leiter, the series editor, for inviting me
to write this book, and to Tony Bruce, the Philosophy editor for
Routledge, for his constant advice and encouragement. During the
course of writing the book I have had a number of stimulating
conversations about Leibniz with Jeffrey McDonough, Alan Nelson,
Lawrence Nolan, John Whipple and June Yang; I have also benefited
from correspondence with Paul Hoffman, Paul Lodge, and Donald
Rutherford. I am deeply indebted to three referees for Routledge for
their careful and constructive comments on the penultimate draft.
Finally, I should like to thank Kristina Wischenkämper for her
skilful copy-editing.
Quotes from Richard Francks and R. S. Woolhouse (eds), G. W.
Leibniz: Philosophical Texts, 1998, are used by permission of Oxford
University Press.
Quotes from Nicholas Jolley, ‘Leibniz: Truth, Knowledge and
Metaphysics’, in Parkinson (ed.), The Renaissance and Seventeenth Century
Rationalism (2003) are used by permission of Taylor & Francis.
Nicholas Jolley
Abbreviations
A German Academy of Sciences (ed.), G.W. Leibniz: Sämtliche
Schriften und Briefe (Darmstadt and Berlin: Berlin Academy,
1923–). References are to series and volume.
AG R. Ariew and D. Garber (eds and trans.), G.W. Leibniz: Philo-
sophical Essays (Indianapolis and Cambridge, Mass.: Hackett,
1989)
AT C. Adam and P. Tannery (eds), Oeuvres de Descartes, 12 vols
(Paris, 1897–1913; repr. Paris: Vrin/CNRS, 1964–76)
CSM J. Cottingham, R. Stoothoff and D. Murdoch (trans.), The
Philosophical Writings of Descartes, 3 vols (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1985). Volume III (The Correspondence)
incorporates a revised version of Anthony Kenny’s translation
of Descartes’s letters and is abbreviated as ‘CSMK’
D L. Dutens (ed.), G.G. Leibnitii Opera Omnia (Geneva, 1768)
DM Discourse on Metaphysics
G C.I. Gerhardt (ed.), Die Philosophischen Schriften von G.W. Leibniz,
7 vols (Berlin: Weidmann, 1875–90)
Gr G. Grua (ed.), G.W. Leibniz: Textes Inédits, 2 vols (Paris: Presses
Universitaires de France, 1948)
H E.M. Huggard (trans.), G.W. Leibniz: Theodicy (London:
Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1952)
JS N. Jolley (ed.) and D. Scott (trans.), Nicolas Malebranche: Dialogues
on Metaphysics and on Religion (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1997)