 Concerning seventeenth-century philosophers, Sturm builds upon Francis Bacon and Gerrit Janszoon Vos (Vossius) regarding his eclectic philosophy and scientific method. He argues against Spinoza’s and Leibniz’s conception of nature, and mentions Thomas Hobbes, Kenelm Digby, Blaise Pascal, and Isaac Newton in passing. Sturm also argues against the Cambridge Platonists, such as Henry More and Ralph Cudworth. In contrast, he builds upon Cartesian thought, using René Descartes, Johann Clauberg, Géraud de Cordemoy, Louis de la Forge, Antoine le Grand, and Nicolas Malebranche as  sources. Cordemoy, La Forge Malebranche, and the Christian mystic Pierre Poiret inspire Sturm’s case in favor of occasionalism.