Background: the teacher was quoting a big-time philosopher: “one cannot possess the air, but one has to possess land” to amplify the pains that the Jews experienced.
1. the statement does not say a specific piece of land. i can stand on this very spot in my living room, but i can also stand in the bathroom. The Jews can live in the land of Israel; they can also live in Europe, Africa, Asia, etc.
2. it has logical error(s) in the statement: a) if "possess" is referred to ownership, the 2nd part of the statement has error: yes, a person cannot own air, for there's no market place to buy the air. but one does not have to possess the ownership of a land in order to stand upon it. b) if "possess" is referred to "occupy", the 1st part has error: yes, a person must occupy a land because the person's feet are set upon the land, but at the same time, one has to occupy air for one’s nostrils are set upon the air.
the 2 entities, air and land, are equally important. the philosopher was just trying to exaggerate the importance of land as humans often fight for land. and the fact that the air is free and invisible causes people to agree with the philosopher's statement without a second thought.
Note: I am not antagonistic toward the Jews. What disgusts me is some foolish teachers who like to impress people by quoting rhetorical thinkers, and when confronted with formal logics, they further embarrass themselves by accusing the student of being assertive.
弥补
13 years ago
2 comments:
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