Wilhelm Leibniz's Philosophical Writings Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Wilhelm Leibniz's Philosophical Writings - Essay Example Mathematicians still use Leibniz's notations and symbols as standards. (Burnham, 2001) This paper also discusses his philosophical writings which span decades. Leibniz was a child prodigy. According to differing sources, his father was a metaphysicist and/or a professor of moral philosophy. Regardless, as a true Renaissance man, Gottfried matured into both and many other things too. He studied law and religion. He sought a way to unite Roman Catholics and Protestants by means of a new Christian theology. He proficiently spoke Latin and Greek before his teen years, and later learned Hebrew. (Speck and Reilly, 1998-2007) Of course, he was a mathematician of the highest capability in his times. A stigma came with his invention (discovery and development) of calculus. His work came quickly on the heels of Sir Isaac Newton's work founding calculus. In scholarly circles there were significant conflicting claims about who deserved credit for fathering the new field of math. Factions of supporters for both great men wanted their man to have sole plaudits. Some accounts of history say this contentiousness stunted the progress of advanced mathematics for almost a century. (Burnham, 2001. see "1. Life" 3) However, Leibniz's works in logic, ethics, morality, truth, reason and theology are the main focus here. They intertwined into a core philosophy that culminates in goodness; more specifically, God's goodness. Leibniz has three main writings dwelling on the essence and marriage of these diverse but related topics. Scholars have pulled them together. They are: - "Philosophical Investigations" (1670), found on the internet citing Leibniz's quotes by number and page - "Theodicy" (1710), a study of good and evil, wrestling with the Question of Evil - "Monadology, Monad" (1714), alludes to 'wave particles' by propounding "connectivity" of all things Leibniz didn't actually publish until very late in his life, 1710 and 1714. Many of his profound concepts have been culled from letters and other documents. He was a "deep thinker" by the standards of any era. He connected the physical "real world" with the metaphysical. Many of his ideas would be incomprehensible to most people today. Those able to stay abreast would be quite challenged on both philosophical and scientific levels of thought. A culture of admiring and critically appraising philosophers, ethicists and moralists pore over and through Leibniz's ideas. Physical scientists have expanded upon his inferences and surmising (combined with those of others, as well) on the composition of the universe. Progenitor of Wave Theory - A Physical Sphere It wasn't called Wave Theory in 1700. But, Leibniz intuited that all matter is somehow connected. He gave credit and responsibility to God. Since then, standing on the "connectivity" concept, physicists have arrived at Wave Structure Matter (WSM). (Haselhurst and Howie, 1998-2007. "Philosophy") The gist of WSM is that waves [of connectivity] course through space between all things that humankind perceives to be separate objects. Leibniz was a stout proponent of such connectivity. Without the technology to delve deeper into finding physical proof, he rationalized a system of thought that was largely based on an a priori rationale about the metaphysical. Since then, physicists, with technological advantages that