Philosophy of Benedict de Spinoza
Dutch Philosopher, Founder of Spinozism, Famous for The Ethics
Aug 6, 2009
Dutch philosopher Benedict (Baruch) de Spinoza remains one of the most compelling of the rationalist school philosophers. His major works, Theological-Political Treatise (1670) and The Ethics (1677,) signify his philosophies. Regarded as the founder of Spinozism, his notable ideas are pantheism, intellectual and religious freedom.
Benedict de Spinoza in a Nutshell
Baruch or Benedict de Spinoza (1632-1677), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands, was a Dutch philosopher of Portuguese Jewish origin. The importance of his work, which revealed considerable scientific aptitude, was not fully realized until years after his death.
Greatly challenged by the modern metaphysics deductions of Descartes, Spinoza took rationalism to its logical extremes, setting out the principles of an ethical system in axiomatic format, said to be his most ambitious undertaking in philosophy that marks his greatness.
Theological-Political Treatise
This book argues for freedom of thought and religion. He advocated taking political power away from the clergy, criticizing organized religion. His biblical criticism was ahead of its time as it marked a radical ontological and philosophical shift. He introduced a pantheistic view of God, and advocated the principle of a democratic and secular society.
The Ethics
Spinoza's major work, The Ethics, was published after his death. Written in the form of definitions, propositions and axioms, it is a work on ethics which sets out his metaphysical views. Like Descartes, Spinoza was concerned to set knowledge on logical foundations. Therefore he first founded his ethical conclusions on a number of ontological and metaphysical beliefs.
Central to his philosophy was similar to Parmenides, that everything in the universe is "one" single substance which can be called "God" or "Nature." Apparently, this is unlike the philosophy of Descartes, who thought that mind and body were two separate entities.
Baruch Spinoza found a way of making room for the kind of freedom in his "One" substance philosophy. Each person, he argued, is a localized concentration of the attributes of reality, since the only true individual is the universe as a whole. To become free, the individual, by means of rational reflection, must understand the extended causal connection that links everything as one: that to become aware of the totality of the universe is to be free.
Later Years of Baruch Spinoza
Though many were shocked by his beliefs in his day, his sentiments reflected the Christians beliefs to persevere in the face of adversity by claiming that "God moves in mysterious ways" and "ours is not to reason why." For Spinoza, to reason why is exactly what must be done to attain freedom.
Spinoza's rationalist philosophy was incompatible with Jewish orthodoxy and in 1656 he was expelled from the synagogue. Likewise, he was denounced by Christians as an atheist.
Following his expulsion from the synagogue, he earned a living from lens-grinding and teaching in Rijnsburg in the Netherlands. He lived quietly as a lens grinder, turning down rewards and honors throughout his life, including prestigious teaching positions. A virtuous and humble man, his moral character was impeccable. He died at the age of 44 of a lung illness. Spinoza is buried in the churchyard at The Hague.
Legacy of Baruch Spinoza
Benedict (Baruch) de Spinoza was rational, mystical and theistic. He is considered one of the great rationalists of 17th-century philosophy. His masterpiece, The Ethics, which opposed Descartes' mind–body dualism, and set in axiomatic format, highly regards him an important philosopher.
Sources:
- Clark, John, Ed. Illustrated Biographical Dictionary. London: Chancellor Press, 1994.
- McGovern, Una, Ed. Biographical Dictionary. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers, 2002.
- Stokes, Philip. Philosophy, the Great Thinkers. London: Capella, 2007.
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