| This question <91|107> overall <91|93> Gus: <91|114-5>. |
| Question 84: Think of a real life situation (not necessarily related to what Marx is speaking about here) where someone says, “a pair of shoes is a pair of shoes,” or “a car is a car,” or “20 yards of linen are 20 yards of linen,” or “I am I” (compare footnote 18 on page ... below). Describe exactly what is meant by this phrase in the situation you chose. |
| [92] Gus: A table is a table In [71], X said: |
| my wife asked what I thought of a particular table we were lokking at. My responce was “a table is a table.” I did not find my statement “nonsensical” or “absurd.” |
| Actually, it sounds like your response was because you were tired of looking at the variety of “different” tables - each with different features or looks than the others. : ) |
| What I meant by my statement is that all the tables we looked at will serve the same purpose- we can eat on them. There was no special function that one table served over another. Each looked slightly different, but no matter which one we bought, we would have been able to eat off it. All 30 tables were, in short, a table. Therefore, a table is a table. |
| I would have to disagree with these statements. All tables may be tables and be able to hold a dinner, but that does not make them the same. Some are round, some square, some with leaves, some of wood and others of glass. Each of the tables, while able to fill the same very general category, was in fact different. If there was no difference, the selection would not have taken you through 10 stores. Maybe the square one would fit in your dining area better than the oval one. If all tables were truly the same, you would have been forced to purchase the oval one, whether or not it best suited your needs. |
| At that point, my wife agreed and we bought the table we were looking at when I made that statement. |
| Well, I'm glad that one suited your needs, but I prefer to think that not all tables are the same, so saying “a table is a table” is not accepting their differences which are each there to fill a distinct need or want. Vive la difference! |
| Hans: Good observation. |
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