Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Quotes: Philadelphia. Philosophy.

A collection of quotes on various topics. The sentence in bold face is a plain statement of the quote that follows.

Philadelphia
He didn’t see anyone he knew, just a bunch of tired looking Philadelphians.
Philadelphia 112 On the train for Princeton he saw no one he knew, only a crowd of fagged-looking Philadelphians. Fitzgerald, This Side of Paradise.

Philosophy
The job of philosophers is to make ideas accessible, not to impose them on others. Philosophy 256 …made it clear that the business of the philosopher was to make ideas available and not to impose them on people. T. H. White, The Once and Future King.

Philosophy deals with problems that cannot be solved by science.
Philosophy xxvi [Philosophy] …dealing with problems not yet open to the method of science—problems like good and evil, beauty and ugliness, order and freedom, life and death. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy.

Science analyzes, philosophy synthesizes.
Philosophy xxvi Science is analytical description, philosophy is synthetic interpretation. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy.

Science takes apart; philosophy puts together.
Philosophy xxvii [The philosopher] …tries to put together…that great universe-watch which the inquisitive scientist has analytically taken apart. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy.

Philosophy begins when one doubts cherished beliefs, dogmas and axioms.
Philosophy 6 Philosophy begins when one learns to doubt—particularly to doubt one’s cherished beliefs, one’s dogmas and one’s axioms. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Plato.

Philosophy asks, “What is man and what can he become?”
Philosophy 6 Philosophy: What is man? What can he become? Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Plato.

Philosophy: think clearly and rule wisely.
Philosophy 29 ...philosophy means two things...to think clearly, which is metaphysics; and to rule wisely, which is politics. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Plato.

Philosophers need to be men of action, not merely men of thought.
Philosophy 33 Plato...giving his philosophers the training of life as well as the erudition of the schools...men of action rather than merely men of thought.... Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Plato.

Philosophy is a quest for unity.
Philosophy 56 If philosophy is the quest for unity Aristotle deserves the high name that twenty centuries gave him…the Philosopher. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Aristotle.

Philosophy is the search for universal unity that synthesizes contradictions.
Philosophy 150 Bruno: The object of philosophy...is to perceive unity in diversity, … to find the synthesis in which opposites and contradictions meet and merge; to rise to that highest knowledge of universal unity which is the intellectual equivalent of the love of God. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Spinoza.

Philosophy synthesizes the fragmented results of science.
Philosophy 366 Spencer: The proper field and function of philosophy lies in the summation and unification of the results of science. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Herbert Spencer.

Philosophy persuades men to virtue without supernatural hopes and threats.
Philosophy 500 Santayana: The great problem of philosophy is to devise a means whereby men may be persuaded to virtue without the stimulus of supernatural hopes and fears. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, Santayana.

Philosophy is a clash of human temperaments.
Philosophy 514 W. James: The history of philosophy is to a great extent that of a certain clash of human temperaments. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, William James.

Philosophy is the clash between the tender-minded (religious) and the tough-minded (skeptical).
Philosophy 514 W. James: These temperaments which select and dictate philosophies may be divided into the tender-minded and the tough-minded[;] the tender-minded temperament is religious...likes to have definite and unchanging dogmas and a priori truths;...takes naturally to free will, idealism...and optimism...tough-minded temperament is materialistic, irreligious, empiricist (going only on “facts”)...fatalistic, pluralistic, pessimistic, skeptical. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, William James.

Philosophy is adjusting conflicting factors in life.
Philosophy 528 Dewey: A catholic and far-sighted theory of the adjustment of the conflicting factors of life is philosophy. Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy, John Dewey.

Whatever happens, is good for us.
Philosophy 569 …whatever happens to us is for our good. Tolstoi, War and Peace.

The shape of snow crystals is not useful to its purpose.
Philosophy snow 18 No utilitarian philosophy explains a snow crystal.... Eiseley, The Immense Journey

No comments:

Post a Comment