more from Gottfried Leibniz

Single Idea 12720

[catalogued under 27. Natural Reality / D. Time / 1. Nature of Time / i. Denying time]

Full Idea

Time never exists, since all of its parts never exist together.

Gist of Idea

Time doesn't exist, since its parts don't coexist

Source

Gottfried Leibniz (Letters to Paul Pellison-Fontinier [1691], A1.6.226), quoted by Daniel Garber - Leibniz:Body,Substance,Monad 4

Book Reference

Garber,Daniel: 'Leibniz: Body, Substance, Monad' [OUP 2009], p.154


A Reaction

The problem here is that he seems to be admitting that time has 'parts'. Can something have parts and not exist? Events will also fail to exist by this criterion, though we could hardly deny that events (or some such) 'happen'.