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# Title: An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding (shelfmarks Leibn. Marg. 38; ZEN Leibn. Marg. 38)
# Folio 176, page id 778263916:0192
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Adequate and Inadequate Ideas.
Ideas be oF an Flypsis, is e had no other Idea oF it, but some seu oF its
Properties: Whereas havins in our plain Ldea, thewhole Essence oF that
Fioure, e trom chence discover thole Properties, and demonstratively
sec hour they Aor, and are inseparable trom it.
6. c2. Thusthe Nind has three Porrs of abstract Ideas, or nominal FL-
sences:
First, Simple Ideas, Whichare entvra, or Copies; but yet certainty
adequate. Becaule beins intended to express nothins but the porver in
Thinos eo produce in theMind such a Senlarion, thac sensation, wlien it
is procluced, cannot but De the Ffect OF FHaE POrVer. Sothe Paper Prrrire
on havinsthe porver, in the Light. (I speale according ro the common
Notion OF LighE,) to produce in me the Senlation, which I call Whire, il
Canmor but Be the F. Fect oF such a Porer, in Lomethins mithout themind:
lince the Mind has noc the porver to produceans suchi Idea in its selt, and
beine meant for nothine else bur che PAect ol luch a Pover, that limple
Idea is real and adequare: the senlation of Whice, in my Mind, beins che
FReet ot that Porver, trhich is in the Paper to produce it, is perteciy
adequate tothat Pover; or else, that Pover mould produce a ditterent
Idea.
Secondly The complex Ideas of Substances are Fctypes, Copies tOO; DuE
not perfect ones, not adequate: Which is verr evident co the Mind, in
thac it plainls perceires, that whaterer Collection of simple Ideas it
makes ofany Substance that exicts, it cannot be sure, that it exactly an-
sirers all chat are in that Substance: Since not having tried all che Ope-
rations of all other Substances uxon it, and Tound aIl the Alterations ic
vould receiretrom, or cause in other substances, it cannot have an cxact
adequate Collection oFall its actire and passive Capacities; and (0 noL
have an adequate complex Ldea oF the Povers ol any substance existing.
and its Relations, Wrhich is that Port of complex Idea oF Substances we
Bare. And, alter all, it re could have, and actually had, in our complex
Ldea, an exact Collection oF all the secundary Oualities, or Povers otany
Subltance, re hould not vec therebr have an Laea ot the Fssence ot thât
Thins. For Cince the Porvers, or Oualities, that are observable bY uS, arc
not the real Fssence of tharSubstance, but depend on it, and Aom trom it,
any Collection Whatsoerer ot thele Oualicies, cannor be thereat F(-
Tence OFthat Thing. Whereby it is plain, that our Pdeas ot Subltances are
not adequates are not whar che Mindintends them to bc. Belides, a Manlias
no Idea oF Substance in general, nor knors irhat Subltance is in it seIF.
6. 24. Thiraly. Complex Ideas of Modes and Relations, are Originals, and
Archeripes; are not Copies, nor made alter the pattern ot any real Fxi-
Stence, to Which theMind intendsthem to be contormable, and exactl to
ansirer. These beins such Collections of simple sdeas, that theMind it selF
puts together, and luch C ollections, chat each of them contains in it precise-
ly all that the Mind intends it Mould, chey are Archetypes and Fsences oF
Modes that maz exist: and lo are deligned ontr for, and belons ontr to
Tuch Modes, as Whenther do exist, have an exact contormitr trith thole
complex Ideas. The Ideas theretore oF Modes and Relations, cannot bur
be adequate.
 II.
 LL