Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
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| '''Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz''' (July 1, 1646 in Leipzig - November 14, 1716 in Hanover) was a [[German philosopher]], [[scientist]], [[mathematician]], [[diplomat]], [[librarian]], and [[lawyer]]. [[Voltaire]] lampooned Leibniz's [[optimism]] in his comic novel ''[[Candide]]''. | '''Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz''' (July 1, 1646 in Leipzig - November 14, 1716 in Hanover) was a [[German philosopher]], [[scientist]], [[mathematician]], [[diplomat]], [[librarian]], and [[lawyer]]. [[Voltaire]] lampooned Leibniz's [[optimism]] in his comic novel ''[[Candide]]''. | ||
| ==Theodicy and optimism== | ==Theodicy and optimism== | ||
| - | The ''Théodicée'' tries to justify the apparent imperfections of the world by claiming that it is optimal among all possible worlds. It must be the best possible and most balanced world, because it was created by a perfect God. | + | The ''[[Théodicée]]'' tries to justify the apparent imperfections of the world by claiming that it is optimal among all possible worlds. It must be the best possible and most balanced world, because it was created by a perfect God. |
| The statement that "[[we live in the best of all possible worlds]]" drew scorn, most notably from [[Voltaire]], who lampooned it in his comic novel ''[[Candide]]'' by having the character ''[[Pangloss|Dr. Pangloss]]'' (a parody of Leibniz) repeat it like a [[mantra]]. Thus the adjective "panglossian", describing one so naive as to believe that the world about us is the best possible one. | The statement that "[[we live in the best of all possible worlds]]" drew scorn, most notably from [[Voltaire]], who lampooned it in his comic novel ''[[Candide]]'' by having the character ''[[Pangloss|Dr. Pangloss]]'' (a parody of Leibniz) repeat it like a [[mantra]]. Thus the adjective "panglossian", describing one so naive as to believe that the world about us is the best possible one. | ||
Revision as of 19:36, 9 March 2015
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The statement that "we live in the best of all possible worlds" drew scorn, most notably from Voltaire, who lampooned it in his comic novel Candide by having the character Dr. Pangloss (a parody of Leibniz) repeat it like a mantra. Thus the adjective "panglossian", describing one so naive as to believe that the world about us is the best possible one. |
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Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (July 1, 1646 in Leipzig - November 14, 1716 in Hanover) was a German philosopher, scientist, mathematician, diplomat, librarian, and lawyer. Voltaire lampooned Leibniz's optimism in his comic novel Candide.
Theodicy and optimism
The Théodicée tries to justify the apparent imperfections of the world by claiming that it is optimal among all possible worlds. It must be the best possible and most balanced world, because it was created by a perfect God.
The statement that "we live in the best of all possible worlds" drew scorn, most notably from Voltaire, who lampooned it in his comic novel Candide by having the character Dr. Pangloss (a parody of Leibniz) repeat it like a mantra. Thus the adjective "panglossian", describing one so naive as to believe that the world about us is the best possible one.
Further reading
- ''The Fold: Leibniz and the Baroque, 1988, Gilles Deleuze
