An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, Volume 1: MDCXC, Based on the 2nd Edition, Books 1 and 2Locke, John
Philosophy
An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, Volume 1: MDCXC, Based on the 2nd Edition, Books 1 and 2
Locke, John
Knowledge, Theory of -- Early works to 1800
The same happens also in space, wherein, conceiving ourselves to be, as
it were, in the centre, we do on all sides pursue those indeterminable
lines of number; and reckoning any way from ourselves, a yard, mile,
diameter of the earth or orbis magnus,—by the infinity of number, we
add others to them, as often as we will. And having no more reason to
set bounds to those repeated ideas than we have to set bounds to
number, we have that indeterminable idea of immensity.
12. Infinite Divisibility.
And since in any bulk of matter our thoughts can never arrive at the
utmost divisibility, therefore there is an apparent infinity to us also
in that, which has the infinity also of number; but with this
difference,—that, in the former considerations of the infinity of space
and duration, we only use addition of numbers; whereas this is like the
division of an unit into its fractions, wherein the mind also can
proceed in infinitum, as well as in the former additions; it being
indeed but the addition still of new numbers: though in the addition of
the one, we can have no more the POSITIVE idea of a space infinitely
great, than, in the division of the other, we can have the positive
idea of a body infinitely little;—our idea of infinity being, as I may
say, a growing or fugitive idea, still in a boundless progression, that
can stop nowhere.
13. No positive Idea of Infinity.
Though it be hard, I think, to find anyone so absurd as to say he has
the POSITIVE idea of an actual infinite number;—the infinity whereof
lies only in a power still of adding any combination of units to any
former number, and that as long and as much as one will; the like also
being in the infinity of space and duration, which power leaves always
to the mind room for endless additions;—yet there be those who imagine
they have positive ideas of infinite duration and space. It would, I
think, be enough to destroy any such positive idea of infinite, to ask
him that has it,—whether he could add to it or no; which would easily
show the mistake of such a positive idea. We can, I think, have no
positive idea of any space or duration which is not made up of, and
commensurate to, repeated numbers of feet or yards, or days and years;
which are the common measures, whereof we have the ideas in our minds,
and whereby we judge of the greatness of this sort of quantities. And
therefore, since an infinite idea of space or duration must needs be
made up of infinite parts, it can have no other infinity than that of
number CAPABLE still of further addition; but not an actual positive
idea of a number infinite. For, I think it is evident, that the
addition of finite things together (as are all lengths whereof we have
the positive ideas) can never otherwise produce the idea of infinite
than as number does; which consisting of additions of finite units one
to another, suggests the idea of infinite, only by a power we find we
have of still increasing the sum, and adding more of the same kind;
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