Book contents
- The Cambridge Spinoza Lexicon
- The Cambridge Spinoza Lexicon
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Contributors
- Using this Lexicon
- Abbreviations
- A
- B
- C
- 27. Calvin and Calvinism
- 28. Causal Axiom
- 29. Cause
- 30. Cause of Itself
- 31. Certainty
- 32. Charity
- 33. Cheerfulness
- 34. Christ
- 35. Citizen
- 36. Common Notions
- 37. Compendium of the Grammar of the Hebrew Language
- 38. Conception
- 39. Confusion
- 40. Consciousness
- 41. Contentment
- D
- E
- F
- G
- H
- I
- J
- K
- L
- M
- N
- O
- P
- Q
- R
- S
- T
- U
- V
- W
- Bibliography
- Index of Cross-References
- References
31. - Certainty
from C
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 January 2025
Book contents
- The Cambridge Spinoza Lexicon
- The Cambridge Spinoza Lexicon
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Contributors
- Using this Lexicon
- Abbreviations
- A
- B
- C
- 27. Calvin and Calvinism
- 28. Causal Axiom
- 29. Cause
- 30. Cause of Itself
- 31. Certainty
- 32. Charity
- 33. Cheerfulness
- 34. Christ
- 35. Citizen
- 36. Common Notions
- 37. Compendium of the Grammar of the Hebrew Language
- 38. Conception
- 39. Confusion
- 40. Consciousness
- 41. Contentment
- D
- E
- F
- G
- H
- I
- J
- K
- L
- M
- N
- O
- P
- Q
- R
- S
- T
- U
- V
- W
- Bibliography
- Index of Cross-References
- References
Summary
Spinoza’s theory of truth has been an important topic of interest in the secondary literature, especially in comparison with Descartes’s conception of the clarity and distinctness of ideas. Certainty (certitudo) is a word commonly used by Spinoza throughout his works. Although it is never formally defined, Spinoza arguably makes specific epistemological and theological uses of it in addition to the usual meaning of certainty as that which is opposed to doubt. We can identify three essential characteristics of certainty in Spinoza’s thought: identity with the objective essence, being a feature of any true idea, and being self-evident.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge Spinoza Lexicon , pp. 79 - 82Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024
References
Recommended Reading
Carriero, J. (2020). Descartes (and Spinoza) on intellectual experience and skepticism. Roczniki Filozoficzne / Annals of Philosophy, 68(2), 21–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Deleuze, G. (1990). Expressionism in Philosophy: Spinoza, trans. C. V. Boundas. Zone. (Original work published 1968.)Google Scholar
Garrett, D. (2018a). Truth and ideas of imagination in the Tractatus de Intellectus Emendatione. In Garrett, , Nature and Necessity in Spinoza’s Philosophy (pp. 151–75). Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garrett, D. (2018b). Truth, method, and correspondence in Spinoza and Leibniz. In Garrett, , Nature and Necessity in Spinoza’s Philosophy (pp. 176–98). Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Matheron, A. (1971). Le Christ et le salut des ignorants chez Spinoza. Aubier-Montaigne.Google Scholar