Buridan's ass

Buridan's ass
a) The hypothetical donkey who is placed precisely midway between two sources of food and/or water.

The National Peace Council was, I will not say a Buridans Ass, but a kind of eunuch organisation, unable to take a decision one way or another.

b) The hypothetical donkey, in context of certainly dying of hunger or thirst by being unable to choose between the two equidistant options.

Not that they are Buridans ass; they just do not believe in categorical decisions.


Wikipedia foundation.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Buridan's ass — is a figurative description of a man of indecision. It refers to a paradoxical situation wherein an ass, placed exactly in the middle between two stacks of hay of equal size and quality, will starve to death since it cannot make any rational… …   Wikipedia

  • buridan's ass — ˈbyu̇rədənz , dənz noun Usage: usually capitalized B Etymology: after Jean Buridan died ab1358 French philosopher, who is reputed to have posed the problem : a hypothetical dilemma in which a person is postulated as presented with two equally… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Buridan's ass — The creature who, placed midway between two identical bales of hay, starved to death, since there was no reason for moving one way rather than the other. The ass is not referred to in the Sophismata of Buridan, but was probably an example used to …   Philosophy dictionary

  • Buridan, Jean — born 1300, Béthune?, France died 1358 French philosopher, logician, and scientific theorist. He studied under William of Ockham at the University of Paris and later taught there. According to his modified version of determinism, though one must… …   Universalium

  • BURIDAN, JEAN —    a scholastic doctor of the 14th century, born in Artois, and famous as the reputed author, though there is no evidence of it in his works, of the puzzle of the hungry and thirsty ass, called after him Buridan s Ass, between a bottle of hay and …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Jean Buridan —     Jean Buridan     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► Jean Buridan     French scholastic philosopher of the fourteenth century, b. at Béthune, in the district of Atois towards the end of the thirteenth century; date of death unknown. He studied at the… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Jean Buridan — (in Latin, Johannes Buridanus; ca. 1295 ndash; 1358) was a French priest who sowed the seeds of the Copernican revolution in Europe. Although he was one of the most famous and influential philosophers of the late Middle Ages, he is today among… …   Wikipedia

  • Donkey — For other uses, see Donkey (disambiguation). Donkey Conservation status Domesticated Scientific classific …   Wikipedia

  • Buridans Esel — Karikatur aus dem 19. Jahrhundert zur US Politik. Die Regierung muss wirtschaftliche einbußen hinnehmen, weil sie sich nicht entscheiden kann, einen Kanal durch Panama oder durch Nicaragua zu bauen. Buridans Esel ist philosophisches Gleichnis:… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • List of philosophy topics (A-C) — 110th century philosophy 11th century philosophy 12th century philosophy 13th century philosophy 14th century philosophy 15th century philosophy 16th century philosophy 17th century philosophy 18th century philosophy 19th century philosophy220th… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”