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| 5035 | The two basics of reasoning are contradiction and sufficient reason |
| Full Idea: The two first principles of reasoning are: the principle of contradiction, and the principle of the need for giving a reason. | |||
| From: Gottfried Leibniz (A Specimen of Discoveries [1686], p.75) | |||
| A reaction: Could animals have any reasoning ability (say, in solving a physical problem)? Leibniz's criteria both require language. Note the overlapping of the principle of sufficient reason (there IS a reason) with the contractual idea of GIVING reasons. |
| 5038 | Assume that mind and body follow their own laws, but God has harmonised them |
| Full Idea: Why not assume that God initially created the soul and body with so much ingenuity that, whilst each follows its own laws and properties and operations, all thing agree most beautifull among themselves? This is the 'hypothesis of concomitance'. | |||
| From: Gottfried Leibniz (A Specimen of Discoveries [1686], p.80) | |||
| A reaction: They may be in beautifully planned harmony, but how do we know that they are in harmony? Presumably their actions must be compared, and God would even have to harmonise the comparison. Parallelism seems to imply epiphenomenalism or idealism. |
| 5037 | God doesn't decide that Adam will sin, but that sinful Adam's existence is to be preferred |
| Full Idea: God does not decide whether Adam should sin, but whether that series of things in which there is an Adam whose perfect individual notion involves sin should nevertheless be preferred to others. | |||
| From: Gottfried Leibniz (A Specimen of Discoveries [1686], p.78) | |||
| A reaction: Compare whether the person responsible for setting a road speed limit is responsible for subsequent accidents. Leibniz's belief that the world could have been made no better than it is (by an omnipotent being) strikes me as blind faith, not an argument. |