 Thomasius is decidedly not a systematic philosopher; instead, and quite consistent with his mature distaste for dogmatism in all its forms, he is best characterized as a conscientiously eclectic thinker (M. Albrecht 1994: 398–416; Bottin &amp; Longo 2015: 301–315). That said, Thomasius’ thought is unified by an overarching conviction in the priority of practical life, and the belief that erudition in whatever sphere of knowledge should be pursued for the sake of the improvement of our will and intellect for use in our ordinary life. This is made clear, for instance, in the definition of learnedness (“Gelahrheit”) that Thomasius provides at the outset of his Introduction to the Doctrine of Reason: