Conceptul de conatus ca principiu al conservării energiei în filosofia lui Leibniz și cea a lui Spinoza
The Concept of Conatus as a Principle of Energy Conservation in the Philosophies of Leibniz and Spinoza

Summary/Abstract: In this paper, we aim to capture the common elements, but also those that differentiate the conceptions of Baruch Spinoza (1632–1677) and Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (1646–1716) related to the concept of conatus and the way in which, starting from this concept, the relationship between man and God can be understood. The term conatus, although it has medieval origins that are recalled from the scholastic tradition, reaches its full meanings only in the modern era, especially in the work of Spinoza and Leibniz, where it takes on anthropological and metaphysical openings. We will demonstrate that, for both Spinoza and Leibniz, this concept had an important role in overcoming the methodological impasse marked by Cartesian dualism, which led to an essential blockage regarding the possibility of communicating substances. The idea of conatus will largely solve this problem. However, notable differences can be found between the visions of these two post-Cartesian thinkers. Given these starting points, we will try to capture the way in which the essence of the idea of man is seen both in Spinoza’s philosophy and in Leibniz’s thought, seeking to identify their common elements, but especially those that distinguish them, especially when it comes to the relationship of the human being to the Creator of the world.

• Details
• Contents