 In order to plausibly use Leibniz’s distinction between the esoteric and the exoteric as an interpretive tool one must have a more detailed account of how he understands the distinction. This itself is not an easy matter, however, as Leibniz’s remarks on the distinction also require interpretation. One challenge for understanding his views on this issue is that some of his most explicit remarks on it are written quite early in his career. Although it is clear that he does not abandon the distinction later in his career one should not uncritically assume that his views on the distinction do not change over time. A second challenge is that Leibniz typically does not identify his exoteric texts as exoteric within those texts. For example, if you were to focus exclusively on what Leibniz writes in the Système nouveau de la nature et de la communication des substances, aussi bien que de l’union qu’il y a entre l’âme et le corps (New system of the nature and communication of substances, and of the union of the soul and body)—the first public presentation of his philosophy—you would have no idea that it is a popular presentation of is views. It is only in letters to certain of his correspondents that Leibniz identifies this text as exoteric. And when he does identify a text as exoteric he often provides few details about exactly what this is supposed to involve. A third challenge for understanding Leibniz’s views is that he does not use the terms “esoteric” and “exoteric” univocally. Sometimes these words are used to distinguish different kinds of content that a philosophy might have; other times they signify different modes of presenting one’s philosophy. It will be crucial to disambiguate these terms as we proceed (see Melzer 2014 for an insightful account of different kinds of esoteric and exoteric writing that have been utilized throughout the history of philosophy).