“ for a man cannot conceive himself capable of a greater certainty than to know that any idea in his mind is such as he perceives it to be ”
John Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1689). copy citation
Author | John Locke |
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Source | An Essay Concerning Human Understanding |
Topic | certainty mind |
Date | 1689 |
Language | English |
Reference | |
Note | |
Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10616/pg10616-images.html |
Context
“and leaves no room for hesitation, doubt, or examination, but the mind is presently filled with the clear light of it. IT IS ON THIS INTUITION THAT DEPENDS ALL THE CERTAINTY AND EVIDENCE OF ALL OUR KNOWLEDGE; which certainty every one finds to be so great, that he cannot imagine, and therefore not require a greater: for a man cannot conceive himself capable of a greater certainty than to know that any idea in his mind is such as he perceives it to be; and that two ideas, wherein he perceives a difference, are different and not precisely the same. He that demands a greater certainty than this, demands he knows not what, and shows only that he has a mind to be a sceptic, without being able to be so.”
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