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Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
Rationalist polymath of monads and the best of all possible worlds.
Overview
A German polymath — philosopher, mathematician, and inventor — Leibniz co-discovered the calculus (independently of Newton) and built one of the great rationalist systems. He held that reality is composed of infinitely many simple, mind-like substances called 'monads', each mirroring the whole universe, coordinated by God's 'pre-established harmony'. Governed by the principle of sufficient reason, God chose to create the 'best of all possible worlds'. He also anticipated symbolic logic and dreamed of a universal calculus of reasoning.
What they supported — and why
Monads
SupportedReality is composed of infinitely many simple, indivisible, mind-like substances (monads), each a unique perspective mirroring the entire universe.
WhyWhatever is truly one and real must be simple and unextended; extended matter is divisible and so cannot be a genuine ultimate substance.
Pre-established harmony
SupportedMonads do not causally interact; God has coordinated them from the start so their states correspond perfectly, like synchronized clocks.
WhySince simple substances have no windows to influence one another, their apparent interaction (including mind and body) must be a divinely pre-arranged harmony.
Sufficient reason and the best possible world
SupportedNothing is without a sufficient reason, and God, being perfect, chose to actualize the best of all possible worlds.
WhyA perfectly good and rational God must have the best reason for what exists, so the actual world, despite its evils, is optimal overall.
Causes championed
- A fully rational, harmonious cosmos
- The reconciliation of science, faith, and metaphysics
- A universal logic of reasoning
Issues wrestled with
- What are the ultimate constituents of reality?
- How do substances relate?
- Why is there evil in a world made by a perfect God?
Hurdles faced
- A bitter priority dispute with Newton over the calculus
- Satirized (as 'Dr. Pangloss') by Voltaire for the 'best of all possible worlds'
Works & books
2 catalogued. Status shows how much survives to today.
Monadology
SurvivesA concise statement of his metaphysics of monads and harmony.
Theodicy; Discourse on Metaphysics
SurvivesHis defense of God's goodness and his mature metaphysics.
Read the texts free
1 of Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz’s works are free to read in full — public-domain English editions on Project Gutenberg, matched from Gutenberg’s own catalogue.
Every edition online — Open Library catalogues 941 works & editions, 95 of them free to read in full.
The influence network
See Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz in the map →In their words
“This is the best of all possible worlds.”
— Theodicy (paraphrase)
Legacy
A universal genius whose calculus, logic, and metaphysics shaped mathematics, philosophy, and — through his dream of a reasoning calculus — the prehistory of computing.
Follow their questions
This thinker is a stop on these paths through philosophy.
Further reading
Cross-checked against these authoritative references.