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About this quote

What does it mean?
Philosophy has made little progress on understanding reality since Plato's time.
In plain terms
We are not closer to understanding reality than Plato was.
What can you take from it?
Recognize that philosophical progress may be limited.

Where it applies

  • academic study
  • intellectual history
  • personal reflection

Putting it to work

  • study ancient philosophy
  • question progress

Questions to consider

  • Has philosophy made progress?
  • Why do ideas repeat over time?

Another view

Progress may exist in areas other than defining reality.

More from Ludwig Wittgenstein

  1. Reading the Socratic dialogues one has the feeling: what a frightful waste of time! What's the point of these arguments that prove nothing and clarify nothing?…

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  2. Philosophers often behave like little children who scribble some marks on a piece of paper at random and then ask the grown-up 'What's that?' - It happened lik…

    Permalink to quote #74
  3. If someone is merely ahead of his time, it will catch up to him one day. (p. 8e)

    Permalink to quote #71

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