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This paper will outline Spinoza's argument in Part 1 of his Ethics of substance. He argues that there is only one substance, which is the same as God, that includes everything in the universe. It will walk through each proposition and explain his proof of it, which relies of his stated definitions. This paper will also explain the difference between Spinoza's belief of substance and that of Leibniz from his Discourse on Metaphysics. It will then argue that Leibniz's account of the number of substances superior.
Spinoza's first proposition is that "substance is by nature prior to its affections" (Cahn p.417). This proposition relies on his definition of a substance which is self created. The affections of the substance, according to his definition, are things that are created by something else. Since the substance is self-created, the substance must have created the affections from itself. Therefore, the substance is prior to its affections since the substance has to be in existence......

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Approximate Word Count: 2615
Approximate Pages: 11 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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