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Philosophical Quotes

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Philosophical Quotes

“The spirit of Plato dies hard. We have been unable to escape the philosophical tradition that what we can see and measure in the world is merely the superficial and imperfect representation of an underlying reality.”

World Has Beens Hard Philosophy Reality Spirit Dies Tradition Philosophical Imperfect Representation Superficial Plato

Book:The Mismeasure of Man (Revised & Expanded)

Source: The Mismeasure of Man (Revised & Expanded)

“Scientists themselves are of surprisingly little help. They find it difficult to talk of what they do because they tend to assume detailed knowledge is required for generalities to be understood. They find it hard to grasp the concept of the meaning of their work, assuming this to be a debate that takes place at a lower level than the specialized discussions with their colleagues. When they do generalize, - or "popularize" as it is usually called with a noticeable degree of contempt - they tend to reveal a startling philosophical naiveté.”

Littles Hard Helping Difficult Levels Degrees Understood Concepts Scientist Philosophical Assuming Debate Discussion Contempt Colleagues Generalities Little Help

Book:Understanding the Present: An Alternative History of Science

Source: Understanding the Present: An Alternative History of Science

“Maybe philosophical problems are hard not because they are divine or irreducible or meaningless or workaday science, but because the mind of Homo sapiens lacks the cognitive equipment to solve them. We are organisms, not angels, and our minds are organs, not pipelines to the truth. Our minds evolved by natural selection to solve problems that were life-and-death matters to our ancestors, not to commune with correctness ot to answer any question we are capable of asking.”

Mind Hard Problem Answers Divine Capable Angel Philosophical Asking Solve Meaningless Organisms Equipment Homo Sapiens Cognitive

Author:Steven Pinker

“Nanny's philosophy of life was to do what seemed like a good idea at the time, and do it as hard as possible. It had never let her down.”

Ideas Hard Philosophy Life Philosophy Philosophical Good Ideas Nannies

Author:Terry Pratchett

“Someone who knows too much finds it hard not to lie.”

Knows Hard Lying Knowledge Too Much Philosophical

Author:Ludwig Wittgenstein

“So much of what we try to do is get to a point where the solution seems inevitable: you know, you think "of course it's that way, why would it be any other way?" It looks so obvious, but that sense of inevitability in the solution is really hard to achieve.”

Thinking Knows Way Trying Looks Hard Seems Courses Achieve Solutions Philosophical Obvious Inevitable Inevitability

Author:Jonathan Ive

“This is a major, wide-ranging, and comprehensive book. A philosophical investigation that is also a literary and historical study, Truth and Truthfulness asks how and why we have come to think of accuracy, sincerity, and authenticity as virtues. Bernard Williams' account of their emergence is as detailed and imaginative as his defense of their importance is spirited and provocative. Williams asks hard questions, and gives them straightforward and controversial answers. His book does not simply describe and advocate these virtues of truthfulness; it manifests them.”

“Heterosexuality is a die-hard custom through which male-supremacist institutions insure their own perpetuity and control over us. Women are kept, maintained and contained through terror, violence, and the spray of semen...[Lesbianism is] an ideological, political and philosophical means of liberation of all women from heterosexual tyranny.”

Mean Hard Political Dies Violence Philosophical Institutions Males Terror Feminist Tyranny Liberation Customs Ideological Spray Heterosexuality Lesbianism Heterosexuality Is

Author:Cheryl Clarke

“The revolutionary spirit is mighty convenient in this, that it frees one from all scruples as regards ideas. Its hard absolute optimism is repulsive to my mind by the menace of fanaticism and intolerance it contains. No doubt one should smile at these things; but, imperfect Esthete, I am no better Philosopher. All claim to special righteousness awakens in me that scorn and anger from which a philosophical mind should be free.”

Source: A Personal Record

“I had some hesitations about philosophy because, if you worked out a philosophical theory, it was hard to know whether you were going to be able to prove it or whether other theories had just as good a claim on belief.”

Ifs Knows Hard Philosophy Able Belief Theory Prove Claims Philosophical Hesitation Prove It

Author:Stephen Cole Kleene