Leibniz and Clarke Correspondence

Hardcover, 112 pages

English language

Published by Hackett Publishing Company.

ISBN:
978-0-87220-525-3
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5 stars (1 review)

For this new edition, Roger Ariew has adapted Samuel Clarke’s edition of 1717, modernizing it to reflect contemporary English usage. Ariew’s introduction places the correspondence in historical context and discusses the vibrant philosophical climate of the times. Appendices provide those selections from the works of Newton that Clarke frequently refers to in the correspondence. A bibliography is also included.

1 edition

(Review)

5 stars

Clark, while certainly not dumb, isn't a good metaphysician, and he doesn't understand many of Leibniz's arguments, so the correspondence is really a pain to read. Leibniz, impatient (plainly, he knows what Clark will say and what he should say, but his actual arguments are complex,so rather than writing them down he points to his earlier works and say things like "I've already shown in my work [...]"), and boastful, isn't a pleasure to read either. Nevertheless, from the fourth letters on, it becomes a deep and honest debate.

Subjects

  • Philosophy
  • Metaphysics