Date: Fri, 23 Jan 1998 10:04:22 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <199801231504.KAA02579@locke.ccil.org> Reply-To: Rob Zook Sender: Lojban list From: Rob Zook Subject: Re: knowledge and belief X-To: LOJBAN@cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu To: John Cowan In-Reply-To: <199801230225.SAA03771@gateway.informix.com> X-UIDL: 249692e4e848afea5c60dcf272cf30ed Status: U X-Mozilla-Status: 0011 Content-Length: 1235 X-From-Space-Date: Fri Jan 23 10:16:03 1998 X-From-Space-Address: - At 07:56 AM 1/22/98 -0300, Jorge J. Llamb=EDas wrote: >la markl cusku di'e > >> > I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance. >>> > - attributed to Socrates >>> >>> Presupposition: "the fact of my ignorance". >> >>But the impact of Socratic irony depends on the falsity >>of this presupposition; Socrates was acknowledged by all >>(including himself) as the wisest & most knowledgeable >>man in Athens. > >That's fine. Irony is allowed. You can ironically presuppose >something, of course, just as you can ironically claim >something. The odd thing would be to say: "I am not ignorant, >but I know that I am." An Aside: Do we know for sure Socrates meant to sound ironic? Perhaps he simply referred to the fact that size of one's ignorance=20 always surpasses the size of one's knowledge. That which we have left to try and know seems infinite, while the amount of one's knowledge=20 definitely seems like a finite quantity. Rob Z. -------------------------------------------------------- Were it offered to my choice, I should have no objection=20 to a repetition of the same life from its beginning, only=20 asking the advantages authors have in a second edition to=20 correct some faults in the first.=20 -- Ben Franklin