5 ideas
| 22519 | Philosophers are revealed by their fears [Billington] |
| Full Idea: To understand any philosopher, ask 'What are they afraid of?'. | |
| From: Ray Billington (talk [2010]) | |
| A reaction: Yes! So... Plato - disorder. Aristotle - ignorance. Augustine - sin. Descartes - uncertainty. Spinoza - fragmentation. Leibniz - superficiality. Hume - speculation. Bentham - egotism. Kant - self-deception. Nietzsche - nihilism. Russell - imprecision. |
| 299 | What is fine is always difficult [Plato] |
| Full Idea: The proverb says 'Anything fine is difficult'. | |
| From: Plato (Hippias Major [c.392 BCE], 304e) | |
| A reaction: attributed (as usual) to Solon |
| 297 | What is fine is the parent of goodness [Plato] |
| Full Idea: Fineness is the father of goodness. | |
| From: Plato (Hippias Major [c.392 BCE], 297b) |
| 16764 | The soul conserves the body, as we see by its dissolution when the soul leaves [Toletus] |
| Full Idea: Every accident of a living thing, as well as all its organs and temperaments and its dispositions are conserved by the soul. We see this from experience, since when that soul recedes, all these dissolve and become corrupted. | |
| From: Franciscus Toletus (Commentary on 'De Anima' [1572], II.1.1), quoted by Robert Pasnau - Metaphysical Themes 1274-1671 24.5 | |
| A reaction: A nice example of observing a phenemonon, but not being able to observe the dependence relation the right way round. Compare Descartes in Idea 16763. |
| 298 | While sex is very pleasant, it should be in secret, as it looks contemptible [Plato] |
| Full Idea: As for sex, everyone agrees that, while it is extremely pleasant, it should be indulged in (if at all) in secret, because it is a highly contemptible sight. | |
| From: Plato (Hippias Major [c.392 BCE], 299a) |