Abstract

Leibniz's mature philosophy is monadological. The only true substances are monads which Leibniz compares to Cartesian res cogitans. In the monadological view, the only variant properties of monads are perceptions of varying degrees of distinctness; corporeal substances are phenomena that supervene on the ordered perceptions of monads. Monads continually change their perceptions, and in this minimal sense, monads are constantly active. The question that any account of Leibniz's monadological view must answer is: What causes the change in the perceptions of monads? To answer this question is to gain clarity not only about Leibniz's monadological account of change, but also about Leibniz's views on causality and explanation for phenomena, since it is the changes in perceptions of monads that seem to account for changes in phenomena.