Animals and Man Essay -- Analysis, G.W. Leibniz

G.W. Leibniz asserts that human are superior to all other creatures. Admittedly, Leibnizs ideas on this matter are somewhat ambiguous, making it difficult to look on his exact position. In some instances within the Discourse on Metaphysics, he appears to hold that animals do not have souls. On other occasions, however, he seems to express beliefs to the contrary. For example, Leibniz first expresses doubt ab bug out souls of animals when he questions if they animals have all souls (Leibniz, 11). In another example, on the contrary, he hints that the souls of other bodies are simply different from sound souls (12). This gives the impression that both other bodies and humans (intelligent souls) have souls albeit different to some degree. Later, however, Leibniz definitively remarks that animals have souls (37). In The Monadology, each remain uncertainty vanishes. Here, he first mentions that nature has given heightened perceptions to animals, from the care she has tak en to furnish them organs (71). Then, a few words later Leibniz vows to excuse how what occurs in the soul represents what occurs in the organs (71). What he implies with this passage is that animals, moreover like humans, have souls which are influenced and impacted by sensory perceptions. Then, in XXVI of The Monadology, he explains that memory provides a kind of sequence in souls, which imitates reason, exactly which must be distinguished from it (71). Leibniz continues, providing an example of a dog retentiveness abuse with a stick to suggest that animals have some plaster bandage of memory or perception. As a result of the memories of abuse and a recollection of the pain, the dog flees when presented with a stick. In arguing as much, Lei... ...ecies. Since humans cannot catch prey, without the use of tools or weaponry, as efficiently as a lion, the lion could then be deemed superior. Reframing what supposedly makes man superior out of an anthropocentric view hopef ully elucidate the idea that no trace makes any being superior over any other.I discipline with Leibniz that a mind created in the image of idol should, indeed, act with friendship in imitation of the divine nature (39). This includes acting as example agents to consider the good and inherent worth of all beings. After all, in many respects, animals and man are very similar. But, assuming human transcendence is an abuse of our unique position as moral agents of God. Moreover, if we believe God has infinite and perfect virtues who acts in a divine nature, then it seems that such an omnibenevolent being would not value any creature over any other.