Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'fragments/reports', 'III.12 On physiognomy' and 'Contemporary Efficient Causation: Aristotelian themes'

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3 ideas

21. Aesthetics / C. Artistic Issues / 7. Art and Morality
Musical performance can reveal a range of virtues [Damon of Ath.]
     Full Idea: In singing and playing the lyre, a boy will be likely to reveal not only courage and moderation, but also justice.
     From: Damon (fragments/reports [c.460 BCE], B4), quoted by (who?) - where?
22. Metaethics / B. Value / 2. Values / e. Death
Apart from the fear, dying is an easy duty [Montaigne]
     Full Idea: If our fears did not lend it weight, dying would be one of our lighter duties.
     From: Michel de Montaigne (III.12 On physiognomy [1580], p.1191)
     A reaction: An Epicurean thought. 'Duties' is nice - presumably death qualifies as a duty, because Nature requires it of us (we each of us 'owe nature a death'). The remark appears to me to be true.
26. Natural Theory / C. Causation / 1. Causation
Causation interests us because we want to explain change [Mumford]
     Full Idea: Like Aristotle, the reason we are really interested in causation is because we want to be able to explain change.
     From: Stephen Mumford (Contemporary Efficient Causation: Aristotelian themes [2014], 8)
     A reaction: This pinpoints a very important and simple idea. It raises the question (among others) of whether we have just invented this thing called 'causation', because no explanation of change was visible. Hume certainly couldn't see any explanation.