Anthony Quinton on Spinoza and Leibniz: Section 3

The ideas of rationalist philosophers Baruch Spinoza and Gottfried Leibniz are examined in this program by philosophy Anthony Quinton. Spinoza favors a pantheistic God who has matter and mind as two attributes, and who is the ultimate substance and explanation of the world. Leibniz sees the real world as consisting of an infinity of things purely spiritual, where everything, including space, is a phenomenon—a by-product of areal world with an infinite array of spiritual centers. Both philosophers construct a world that is very different form what the average person perceives, and both reject Cartesian duality.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Bryan
• Magee
• Anthony
• Quinton
• Philosophy
• Baruch
• Spinoza
• Gottfried
• Leibniz

[dedbusted]

I got that also. Glad youtube has people out there interested in more than Hannah Montana.

[zaaz369]

I love Leibniz too.

[cscambler]

@Oppositum its a good point - I thought it in its most basic form in the 1st or 2nd part, when they switched from the idea that all nature must be god to god being synonymous with nature. One could easily think a god that was greater than or equal to - something like Kantian noumena, which as is not often noted, in a certain sense both include and transcend (rather than just transcending) phenomenal nature.

[Oppositum]

@alifeofreason There is a Spinoza scholar (N Grossman) at my university--the University of Illinois at Chicago--who maintains that Spinoza was a panentheist. Spinoza did not think that the physical/mental universe was all that existed; God is more than this, as is evident from Spinoza's comments on the attributes of thought and extension. These are only two attributes, of which there are said to be infinitely many. So, I would have to agree and conclude a sort of naturalistic panentheism

[TheJbach]

The will has its source in the self and does not exist independently of it. The self is an image of God as created by Him. The self exercises its God-given will in the quest to realize freedom.... and this experience is by Grace.

[jjbrewer1]

lolzzzz 8:08 - 8:10

[DerfRellim11]

@4bysmal yeah, i was about to post that the guy on the left confused me badly from 5:10-whenever the other guy explained what he meant with about 1/10th the words.

[MrAnthonyVance]

Two great speakers and thinkers engaged in a wonderful discussion who take the works of Spinoza and Leibniz and help us better understand. Totally enriching and entertaining. Applause!

[4bysmal]

The host was on fire here. I think he did a better job of explaining Leibniz's philosophy than Quinton did. Very clear and well spoken.

[alifeofreason]

This is interesting. Quinton holds that Spinoza was a pantheist, but this isn't at all obvious! David Hume defined Spinoza as an atheist, and Steven Nadler (perhaps the foremost scholar on Spinoza today) also believes that Spinoza was an atheist and not a pantheist or a panentheist.

[flimflam0069]

@FaaarLeft I'll adopt a third option and choose Søren Aabye Kierkegaard.

[FaaarLeft]

Who has a cooler name: Spinoza or Liebniz? It's hard to decide.