Maupertuis’s Principle of Least Action: Epistemology and Metaphysics

Montesquieu.it

Marco Storni¹ 

[1] Forschungszentrum Gotha der Universität Erfurt;

关键词: maupertuis;    principle of least action;    newton;    leibniz;    epistemology;    metaphysics;   

DOI  :  10.6092/issn.2421-4124/9029

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The paper deals with Pierre-Louis Moreau de Maupertuis’s (1698-1759) writings on the principle of least action (PLA). I discuss Maupertuis’s philosophical interpretation of the PLA by analysing three of his papers (1740, 1744, 1746), in order to assess the overall consistency of his argument. As I shall argue, Maupertuis presents the PLA as a universal principle of nature, this being at odds with the empiricist inspiration of his epistemology. Maupertuis’s attempt to introduce conceptual elements borrowed from the Leibnizian tradition into a Newtonian-inspired framework creates in fact a tension that is difficult to overcome.

【 授权许可】

Unknown