3 Oct. 1814

Logic

2

Ch.2. Ontology

Entities classed

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2

At any point of time {in any place whatsoever} take any entity - any real entity - whatsoever, between its existence in that place and its non-existence in that same place, there is not any alternative, there is not any medium whatsoever.

Necessity, impossibility, certainty, uncertainty, probability, improbability, actuality, potentiality; - whatsoever there is of reality correspondent to any of these names, is nothing more or less than a disposition, a persuasion of the mind, on the part of him by whom these words are employed, in relation to the state of things, or the event or events to which these qualities are ascribed.

Down to the present time - whatsoever be this present time, whether the time of writing this, or the time of anyone's reading it, whatsoever has not existed has not had existence; at this time whatsoever does exist, has existence, - whatsoever does not exist has not existence; and so at any and every future point of time. Throughout the whole expanse of time, past, present, and future, put together, where will room be found for anything real to answer to any of these names ?

Quality itself is but a fictitious entity, but these are all of them so many fictitious qualities. They do not, as real qualities, - they do not, like gravity, solidity, roundness, hardness, belong to the objects themselves to which they are ascribed, - in the character of attributes of the objects to which they are ascribed, they are mere chimeras, mere creatures of the imagination - nonentities.

Yet, nonentities as they are, but too real is the mischief of which some of them, and, in particular, the word necessity, has been productive: - antipathy, strife, persecution, murder upon a national, upon an international, scale.

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