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Two thinkers, side by side

Life

Anne Conway

1631 CE – 1679 CE

RationalistEarly Modern

She argued that spirit and matter are not two things but one, and quietly shaped Leibniz's monads.

Leibniz

1646 CE – 1716 CE

Early ModernRationalist

Born Leipzig

This is the best of all possible worlds. He invented calculus, dreamed of a universal language, and believed God chose this universe from an infinite menu.

Connection

Anne Conway influence Leibniz — Leibniz read Conway's treatise and borrowed her term, the monad, for the living units at the base of his system.

Shared Ideas

Being

Ideas

The Mind-Body Problem Being

Reason Being

Words

“Spirit and body differ not essentially, but only in degree.”
— Anne Conway

“This is the best of all possible worlds.”
— Leibniz

Key Moments

1631 CE

Born in London

c. 1677 CE

The Principles of Philosophy

1679 CE

Death in London

c. 1690 CE

Correspondence with Leibniz

1646 CE

Born in Leipzig

c. 1675 CE

Develops the Calculus

1714 CE

Writes the Monadology

1716 CE

Death in Hanover

Works

The Principles of the Most Ancient and Modern Philosophy

Monadology