Ideas from 'New Proof of Possibility of Well-Ordering' by Ernst Zermelo [1908], by Theme Structure

[found in 'From Frege to Gödel 1879-1931' (ed/tr Heijenoort,Jean van) [Harvard 1967,0-674-32449-8]].

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18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 6. Judgement / a. Nature of Judgement
We should judge principles by the science, not science by some fixed principles
                        Full Idea: Principles must be judged from the point of view of science, and not science from the point of view of principles fixed once and for all. Geometry existed before Euclid's 'Elements', just as arithmetic and set theory did before Peano's 'Formulaire'.
                        From: Ernst Zermelo (New Proof of Possibility of Well-Ordering [1908], §2a)
                        A reaction: This shows why the axiomatisation of set theory is an ongoing and much-debated activity.