What is"Self-preservation"?——Spinoza on"Conatus"and the Essence and Existence of Finite Modes
Spinoza's"conatus"theory is an important theory involving his metaphysics,ethics and political philosophy.However,scholars have a misunderstanding regarding this theory,that is,when Spinoza grants rational and irrational individuals the same right of self-preservation,it brings an insurmountable contradiction to the system of his philosophy:the irrational individual preserves his individual life,while the rational individual pursues virtue and freedom,which implies ignoring life it-self.Since the two are equal natural rights,Spinoza cannot bridge the gap between the right to affirm life and the right to cancel it.Through the analysis of the essence and existence of finite modes,this article points out that whether it is rational self-preservation or irrational self-preservation,what is preserved is the existence of the individual's special essence.Therefore,the difference between the two is the difference in the strength of self preservation,as well as the difference in the magnitude of natural rights,not the difference in the objects of preservation.Spinoza's emphasizing rational self-preservation,is not to achieve the immortality of the soul that transcend the body and the world,which is the ideal of traditional philosophy,but to live in the real world.
self-preservationreasonessenceexistencethe eternity of the mind
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