Single Idea 21396

[catalogued under 24. Political Theory / A. Basis of a State / 1. A People / a. Human distinctiveness]

Full Idea

Stoics say man differs from irrational animals because of internal speech ...and in virtue of impressions created by inference and combination. Because of this man grasps 'signal', of the form 'If this, then that', which follows from the nature of man.

Gist of Idea

Man is distinguished by knowing conditional truths, because impressions are connected

Source

report of Stoic school (fragments/reports [c.200 BCE]) by A.A. Long - Hellenistic Philosophy 4.3.1

Book Reference

Long,A.A.: 'Hellenistic Philosophy' [Duckworth 1986], p.125


A Reaction

[In Sextus, Adv.Math 8.275-] This is unusual. The distinctive feature of humans is their ability to assert conditionals (because they see connections - or associations - among their impressions). Nice thought.