Newton actually released most of his work as graphical proofs, not calculus, partly for this reason (and partly because he was an asshole who wanted to keep his

Newton actually released most of his work as graphical proofs, not calculus, partly for this reason (and partly because he was an asshole who wanted to keep his methods a trade secret). Before Newton, math was graphical. The problem is, it's hard to come up with graphical proofs. It's a lot easier to reason symbolically. If you want to solve mathematical problems, equations may be better. If you want to explain your reasoning, then diagrams can be better.