Calculus

[Sheila King]

Yes, it seems that Voltaire was making fun of Leibnitz. The full text of
Candide can be found here:
http://eserver.org/fiction/candide.txt

And searching within that page for "best of all" finds this passage:

Candide >  Master Pangloss taught the 
Candide > metaphysico-theologo-cosmolonigology. He could prove to 
Candide > admiration that there is no effect without a cause; and, that 
Candide > in this best of all possible worlds, the Baron's castle was 
Candide > the most magnificent of all castles, and My Lady the best of 
Candide > all possible baronesses.
Candide >   "It is demonstrable," said he, "that things cannot be 
Candide > otherwise than as they are; for as all things have been 
Candide > created for some end, they must necessarily be created for the
Candide > best end. Observe, for instance, the nose is formed for 
Candide > spectacles, therefore we wear spectacles. The legs are visibly
Candide > designed for stockings, accordingly we wear stockings. Stones 
Candide > were made to be hewn and to construct castles, therefore My 
Candide > Lord has a magnificent castle;.... 

and there is more, too, searching within the document on that same
phrase.  ;)

I guess someone didn't find Leibnitz' philosophy so convincing!

--
Sheila King
http://www.thinkspot.net/sheila/
http://www.k12groups.org/

On Tue, 3 Jul 2001 13:38:20 -0500, Kemp Randy-W18971
<Randy.L.Kemp at motorola.com> wrote in comp.lang.python in article
<mailman.994185546.12116.python-list at python.org>:

:It was originally Leibniz.  Please refer to the link (which I found at www.northernlight.com, using keywords leibniz philosophy) at http://www.utm.edu/departments/artsci/ppr/phil/fieser/110/unit7/leibniz.htm
:
:-----Original Message-----
:From: Tim Daneliuk [mailto:tundra at tundraware.com]
:Sent: Tuesday, July 03, 2001 1:00 PM
:To: python-list at python.org
:Subject: Re: Calculus
:
:
:Kemp Randy-W18971 wrote:
:> 
:> Wait a minute!  Wasn't Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz one of the founders of Calculus?  And wasn't he also a philosopher, who with his world of monads, said that this is the best of all possible worlds?  And didn't the gentlemen direct his question to the Python group?  In essence, he is following the philosophy of Leibniz.
:
:I thought it was Voltaire who said we live in the best of all possible
:world (in 'Candide')...