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22591 | We know perfection when we see what is imperfect |
Full Idea: We know of perfection as we look upon what is imperfect. | |||
From: Iris Murdoch (Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals [1992], 13) | |||
A reaction: This is in the context of a discussion of the ontological argument for God's existence, but I seize on it as a nice expression of the idealisation capacity of our minds. The alternative is that perfection is innate idea, since we aren't seeing it. |