 Appealing to similarities between his views and those of his predecessors is one of Leibniz’s strategies for presenting his philosophy in a way that makes it seem to be not too far from received opinions. We need to remain open to the possibility that Leibniz’s proclamations of continuity between his thought and the thought of his philosophical forebears often mask subtle or not so subtle differences between their respective views. Nuanced differences and radical implications may be left implicit or omitted entirely in his more exoteric works. One might put the point as follows. Leibniz is not merely finding ideas in other philosophers and incorporating them whole cloth into his philosophical system. In some cases, at least, Leibniz develops distinctive philosophical views and then seeks out similar ideas in his predecessors as a strategy for presenting his views to the public (see Schepers 2008 and Mercer 2001: 23–59 for more on this topic).