Leibniz: Discourse on Metaphysics
The Discourse on Metaphysics, written around January 1686, is one of Leibniz’s fundamental works, since it is the most accomplished systematic expression of Leibniz’s philosophy in the 1680s, the time when Leibniz’s philosophy reached maturity. The point of the Discourse is to give a metaphysics for Christianity. That is, Leibniz’s goal is to give the answers that he believes Christians should give to the basic metaphysical questions, questions about why the world exists, what is the world like, what kinds of things exist, and what is the place of human beings in the world. To this purpose Leibniz discusses some of the most traditional topics of metaphysics, like the nature of God, the purpose of God in creating the world, the nature of substance, the possibility of miracles, the nature of our knowledge, free will, and the justice behind salvation and damnation. This book is a new translation of the Discourse and a philosophical commentary of it.