tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post4467518726881223908..comments2024-03-29T03:57:26.974-04:00Comments on Grim's Hall: The joys of lawGrimhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07543082562999855432noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post-42854906574468998822012-11-13T00:09:30.925-05:002012-11-13T00:09:30.925-05:00That much I actually knew - in Charles Murray'...<i>That much I actually knew - in Charles Murray's </i>Human Accomplishment, <i>Aristotle comes across as the most accomplished human being ever.</i><br /><br />That's something like a fair assessment. He stood on the shoulders of giants, of course: but it happens to be the case that most of those giants we know chiefly because he mentions them and explains their views.Grimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07543082562999855432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post-47294531217108920672012-11-12T23:33:03.276-05:002012-11-12T23:33:03.276-05:00(I should say "western philosophy" - Mur...(I should say "western philosophy" - Murray tabulates art and philosophy for separate cultures separately.) Joseph W.https://www.blogger.com/profile/09480728887840887200noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post-79198362968997193532012-11-12T23:32:04.737-05:002012-11-12T23:32:04.737-05:00That much I actually knew - in Charles Murray'...That much I actually knew - in Charles Murray's <i>Human Accomplishment</i>, Aristotle comes across as the most accomplished human being ever. Murray's criteria involve the amount of space each important figure takes up in various standard reference works...not the <i>perfect</i> standard, perhaps, but a good numerical one that lets him play with the data and unearth many interesting patterns. <br /><br />One reason Aristotle rates so highly because he pops up in several places, including biology as well as philosophy. Joseph W.https://www.blogger.com/profile/09480728887840887200noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post-78039167587152608052012-11-12T21:51:47.952-05:002012-11-12T21:51:47.952-05:00Joe:
You would like Nicholas of Cusa, maybe. He ...Joe:<br /><br />You would like Nicholas of Cusa, maybe. He was a Cardinal of the Catholic Church, but equally sure that we weren't meant to understand anything at all.<br /><br />Actually, before you get to him, you should read more Aristotle. You've been asking me about his understanding of animals, and I haven't given it adequate defense given that I broadly agree with your conclusions. But before you decide on those conclusions, you should read <a href="http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/history_anim.html" rel="nofollow">this</a>. Aristotle was really the premier empirical biologist of his age: his writings on dissection and the divisions of animals were cited as authorities two thousand years after he died.Grimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07543082562999855432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post-45623608575374686032012-11-12T21:25:36.052-05:002012-11-12T21:25:36.052-05:00"Mollusks of jargon" would be a bitchin&..."Mollusks of jargon" would be a bitchin' name for a rock band.<br /><br />Just sayin'.Cassnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post-12055191791202433332012-11-12T21:06:31.987-05:002012-11-12T21:06:31.987-05:00...which is none! What a species we are.
A com......which is none! What a species we are. <br /><br />A comfort to me when I switched from physical chemistry to law, was this thought: Nature didn't make the physical world fit human intuition. There's no guarantee that everything out there is comprehensible to <i>anyone</i>, let alone to, say, me. But every bit of law is made by humans for humans, and therefore simply <i>must</i> be possible for humans to understand...And yet, it seems, there are some who dedicated their lives to proving me wrong about that. <br /><br />(Actually, the hardest stuff -- the Rule Against Perpetuities rates near the top, say most law students -- really does make a kind of sense when you delve into it. But when you wonder <i>why</i> people would do it that way, it makes your head hurt.) Joseph W.https://www.blogger.com/profile/09480728887840887200noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5173950.post-59772062246017070132012-11-12T16:10:59.748-05:002012-11-12T16:10:59.748-05:00A problem not limited to the law, for whatever com...A problem not limited to the law, for whatever comfort that provides.Grimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07543082562999855432noreply@blogger.com