Wednesday, August 01, 2012

Mitteleuropa

Returning to Leibniz' early years with Antognazza's help, I'm encountering obscure sixteenth and seventeenth century figures I haven't seen in years - Ramus (above), Keckerman, Alsted (below),
Bisterfeld, Comenius, Jakob Thomasius, Calixt (below), etc. It's an unexpected pleasure! Antognazza's argument that Leibniz' concerns and approaches were rooted in specifically Central European traditions rings
true, probably because my view of Leibniz was shaped by Kurt Huber (below, better known as the patron of the White Rose in Hitler's Munich). I miss the non-modern messiness of early modern Mitteleuropa.