Baruch Spinoza
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Baruch Spinoza was considered to be one of the best rationalists of the 17th century when it came to philosophy. He was also considered to be a certain ethicist because of his major philosophical work called The Ethics. Spinoza was considered to have good mathematical ability. His work got recognition after he died. He paved the way for The Enlightenment and he was the founder of criticizing the Bible.
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Life
Spinoza was thrown out of the Jewish community because he claimed that God was the mechanism of nature and the universe. He also claimed that the bible was a metaphorical piece of literature that was used to teach the nature of God.
Philosophy
Some of Spinoza’s philosophical claims are as follows:
- The natural world is infinite.
- There is no real difference between good and evil.
- Rights come from the State
- Animals are subordinate to human beings.
- Everything done by all animals and humans is excellent and divine.
- There is no free will.
Influenced and influences
Like many philosophers, Spinoza was influenced by many people and many people were influenced by Spinoza. The list goes as follows:
- Hobbes: Spinoza was influenced by him
- Descartes: Spinoza was influenced by him.
- Kant: He was influenced by Spinoza
- Davidson: He was influenced by Spinoza
Modern influence
Albert Einstein said that Spinoza influenced by Spinoza the most in his work. The Netherlands had Spinoza’s picture on its money until the Euro was introduced in Europe in 2002. Also, the highest and most acclaimed science prize in the Netherlands is named after Spinoza.