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Article LEIBNIZ AND SPINOZA. ← Page 10 of 25 →
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Leibniz And Spinoza.
often , very often this is the case ; pride holds up many , and religion more , but where a Avoman has once fully bestowed her whole affection , even though on an undeserving object , then she is entrenched in a tower which cannot be taken ; so long as that affection lasts , so long is she proof against temptation . The great German philosopher stands up stoutl y for female
constancy : he Avill not heed the slanders on either side ; he will neither say with the one" Men were deceivers ever , One foot on land , and one on sea , — To one thing constant never ;" nor will he agree Avith the old Roman : " varium et mutabile
semper femina ; " nor Avrite Avith Francis I .: — " Souvent femme varie , Bien fol qui s' y fie ;" but he will claim for constancy in general a real existence , and maintain that examples are to be found every day , and in every walk of life .
Among the false Airtues AA'hich our Abbe exposes , he ranks patience during sickness , and he observes that it arises from the knoAvledge that impatience Avould only tend to augment and aggravate any bodily illness , so that the love of life and health would tend to make any wise person patient under such circumstances ; to AA'hich Leibniz simply replies , " and very good
reason too : " but IIOAV often do Ave find real resignation—a conviction that all suffering comes to us as the chastisement of a Father , and is to be received as such . No one loved life more than Ma 3 cenas , for he has left on record that he would cling to life amidst the greatest imaginable sufferings , yet we do not hear that he Avas particularly patient ; and we may adduce the
conduct of the North American Indian at the stake ; surely his fortitude cannot be attributed to any desire to preserve a life Avhich he knows will last onl y a feAV hours . There are innumerable instances of persons who have laboured under diseases of the most frightfully painful character , and who , while they knew that a few days or a few hours must terminate the scene ,
have yet exhibited the most beautiful patience under their OAVU sufferings , and the greatest consideration for the feelings of others . There would be no difficulty in finding examples of this by hundreds , if it were needful . In fine , the whole book of the Abbe is founded on the doctrine that men have feAV virtues , and women none at all , — a notion Avhich , to the Avarm heart and genial character of Leibniz , could not fail to be an intolerable heresy . On one point , that of generosity , he Avrote a paper himself , indepen-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Leibniz And Spinoza.
often , very often this is the case ; pride holds up many , and religion more , but where a Avoman has once fully bestowed her whole affection , even though on an undeserving object , then she is entrenched in a tower which cannot be taken ; so long as that affection lasts , so long is she proof against temptation . The great German philosopher stands up stoutl y for female
constancy : he Avill not heed the slanders on either side ; he will neither say with the one" Men were deceivers ever , One foot on land , and one on sea , — To one thing constant never ;" nor will he agree Avith the old Roman : " varium et mutabile
semper femina ; " nor Avrite Avith Francis I .: — " Souvent femme varie , Bien fol qui s' y fie ;" but he will claim for constancy in general a real existence , and maintain that examples are to be found every day , and in every walk of life .
Among the false Airtues AA'hich our Abbe exposes , he ranks patience during sickness , and he observes that it arises from the knoAvledge that impatience Avould only tend to augment and aggravate any bodily illness , so that the love of life and health would tend to make any wise person patient under such circumstances ; to AA'hich Leibniz simply replies , " and very good
reason too : " but IIOAV often do Ave find real resignation—a conviction that all suffering comes to us as the chastisement of a Father , and is to be received as such . No one loved life more than Ma 3 cenas , for he has left on record that he would cling to life amidst the greatest imaginable sufferings , yet we do not hear that he Avas particularly patient ; and we may adduce the
conduct of the North American Indian at the stake ; surely his fortitude cannot be attributed to any desire to preserve a life Avhich he knows will last onl y a feAV hours . There are innumerable instances of persons who have laboured under diseases of the most frightfully painful character , and who , while they knew that a few days or a few hours must terminate the scene ,
have yet exhibited the most beautiful patience under their OAVU sufferings , and the greatest consideration for the feelings of others . There would be no difficulty in finding examples of this by hundreds , if it were needful . In fine , the whole book of the Abbe is founded on the doctrine that men have feAV virtues , and women none at all , — a notion Avhich , to the Avarm heart and genial character of Leibniz , could not fail to be an intolerable heresy . On one point , that of generosity , he Avrote a paper himself , indepen-