The Discourse on Metaphysics: Correspondence with Arnauld/Monadology

"I flatter myself that I have learned something by following in the tracks of Plato and others, and have reached, in one way at least, the serene temples erected by the teachings of the wise. These temples are built on a foundation of general truths which do not depend on facts and yet, as I see it, form the key to the knowledge which passes judgment on facts...I have always striven to uncover the truth that lies buried under and dispersed among the various philosophical schools, and to bring it into harmony with itself."