Let $X$ and $Y$ two sets. Given a set $\mathcal{D}\in\mathcal{P}(\mathcal{P}(X))$ one can define a relation $R$ on $Y^X$ saying $fRg$ iff $\{x\in X|f(x)=g(x)\}\in\mathcal{D}$. It is not too hard to show that if $card(Y)\geq3$, $R$ is an equivalence relation iff $\mathcal{D}$ is a filter. Let us call $\tilde{f}$ the equivalence class of $f$. Philosophically speaking, the sets in $\mathcal{D}$ are sets which are more important than others and $\tilde{f}=\tilde{g}$ iff they are equal on some important subset of $X$.
Now, recall the usual definition of a limit following a filter $\mathcal{F}$ on $X$, if $l\in Y$ with $Y$ a topological space : $$f\xrightarrow[\mathcal{F}]{} l \Leftrightarrow \forall V\in\mathcal{V}_l,\exists F\in\mathcal{F},f(F)\subset V$$ What we see here is that a limit is primarily concerned not with $f$, but with its class $\tilde{f}$, as $(fRg \wedge f\xrightarrow[\mathcal{F}]{} l) \Rightarrow g\xrightarrow[\mathcal{F}]{} l$. It makes then sense that we use filters to see the spot where a limit is taken. When we use the Fréchet filter on $\mathbb{N}$, the values of the sequence for $n\leq$ a given $n_0$ do not matter. The same goes in a metric space when $x\rightarrow x_0$, the value of the function outside of a given $V\in \mathcal{V}_x$ do not matter.
Recall the axioms of a topology defined in terms of neighbourhoods, we call a topology on $X$ a family $(\mathcal{V}_x)_{x\in X}$ of sets in $\mathcal{P}(\mathcal{P}(X))$ which verifies for all $x\in X$ :
- $\mathcal{V}_x$ is a filter on $X$
- $\forall V\in\mathcal{V}_x,x\in V$
- $\forall V\in\mathcal{V}_x,\exists W\in \mathcal{V}_x, W\subset V\wedge \forall y\in W,W\in \mathcal{V}_y$
I will try to give an explanation of the first two axioms in light of the discussion of filters given above.
- The first axiom lets one see that we can use the neighbourhood of $x$ as the spot where the limit is taken.
- One can prove the following for a set $X$ and a filter $\mathcal{F}$ : $\mathcal{F}\subset F_x$, the principal ultrafilter for some $x$ or the Frechet filter $\mathcal{F}_{Frechet}\subset \mathcal{F}$. It makes sense that we use the former possibility when we want to define nearness to $x$. Furthermore, if the second axiom was false, there would be an important set which does not contain $x$.
- What meaning do you give to the third axiom ? I see that it guarantees the equivalence between the usual axioms of a topology using open sets and the ones presented above. But I want more than a mere formal equivalence of definitions. I want something which has real meaning as far as limits are concerned, in order to build an intuition of topological spaces (which I think the above discussion begins to give). I want to have what I have for many other structures : a vision.