tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post113683785523741238..comments2023-10-30T11:13:44.310-04:00Comments on The Ethical Werewolf ‡ by Neil Sinhababu : Orlando Bloom, objects, and states of affairsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1137181870001617782006-01-13T14:51:00.000-05:002006-01-13T14:51:00.000-05:00Niven was just borrowing the linguistic observatio...Niven was just borrowing the linguistic observation from Plato, who wrote in the Euthydemus:<BR/><BR/>Ctesippus: And your father is a dog?<BR/><BR/>Dionysodorus: And so is yours. If you will answer my questions, I will soon extract the same admissions from you, Ctesippus. You say that you have a dog.<BR/><BR/>Ctesippus: Yes, a villain of a one.<BR/><BR/>Dionysodorus: And he has puppies?<BR/><BR/>Ctesippus: Yes, and they are very like himself.<BR/><BR/>Dionysodorus: And the dog is the father of them?<BR/><BR/>Ctesippus: Yes, I certainly saw him and the mother of the puppies come together.<BR/><BR/>Dionysodorus: And is he not yours?<BR/><BR/>Ctesippus: To be sure he is.<BR/><BR/>Dionysodorus: Then he is a father, and he is yours; ergo, he is your father, and the puppies are your brothers.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136955589476247252006-01-10T23:59:00.000-05:002006-01-10T23:59:00.000-05:00Just reread your comment, djw. Actually, what I'm...Just reread your comment, djw. Actually, what I'm defending here is the orthodox view. <BR/><BR/>Kimmitt, when we say that a girl "wants Orlando Bloom," we're saying that she wants something a little more than his attention.Neil Sinhababuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15672033745772751532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136900283047986032006-01-10T08:38:00.000-05:002006-01-10T08:38:00.000-05:00I don't know. If Orlando Bloom and chocolate were...I don't know. If Orlando Bloom and chocolate were in the room, I'd go for the chocolate first. I think Brad Pitt is the better choice, but most of the women I know are mad at him right now. George Clooney would be my choice, but he might skew a little old for some. I think you should ask a lot of women for their "list of 5" and see who shows up most consistently.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10823325004000574937noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136885986655260522006-01-10T04:39:00.000-05:002006-01-10T04:39:00.000-05:00Brad Pitt is currently residing in my aquarium, bu...Brad Pitt is currently residing in my aquarium, but I'd make room for George Clooney, if he'd just lose that silly name.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136873988336016212006-01-10T01:19:00.001-05:002006-01-10T01:19:00.001-05:00I do think about that, djw. And being a Tolkien f...I do think about that, djw. And being a Tolkien fan, I chose Legolas.Neil Sinhababuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15672033745772751532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136873946748604272006-01-10T01:19:00.000-05:002006-01-10T01:19:00.000-05:00Larry Niven, that clever bastard. He stole my ide...Larry Niven, that clever bastard. He stole <A HREF="http://blarblog.blogspot.com/2004/09/ask-linguist.html" REL="nofollow">my idea</A> (which I came up with when trying to square my use of the phrase "my readers" with my firm anti-slavery stance), traveled back in time to before I was born, and published it as a short story. <A HREF="http://literalmind.blogspot.com/2004/09/first-time.html" REL="nofollow">Chris Barker</A> stole it too, and put it in his dissertation a few years back. They're called "relational possessives", apparently.Blarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17654557196171228300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136873075173880282006-01-10T01:04:00.000-05:002006-01-10T01:04:00.000-05:00This seems utterly commonsensical to me. No one ha...This seems utterly commonsensical to me. No one has defended this view before? You philosophers are an odd bunch.<BR/><BR/>You should be optimistic and assume this will be read throughout the ages. As such, choose someone whose status as a sex symbol will persist over time. I'm not sure who that is (Brad Pitt's had a good run so far) but I don't expect it will be Orlando Bloom.David Watkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14954313265808615991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136846620712953242006-01-09T17:43:00.000-05:002006-01-09T17:43:00.000-05:00I'd rather have George Clooney in my aquarium, but...I'd rather have George Clooney in my aquarium, but that's just me.<BR/><BR/>And then there's the speech act, and I guess you don't get much if you simply say "Orlando Bloom," right?<BR/><BR/>Good luck on your chapter!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136845367627345772006-01-09T17:22:00.000-05:002006-01-09T17:22:00.000-05:00jack, my brother and sister often do this thing wh...jack, my brother and sister often do this thing where they have a mock argument about whether something is his favorite thing or hers. They're pretending not to understand that the 'my' of possession is different from the relational 'my' involved in something's being 'my favorite'.Neil Sinhababuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15672033745772751532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136843953755280842006-01-09T16:59:00.000-05:002006-01-09T16:59:00.000-05:00Oh, and your passage reminded me of a Larry Niven ...Oh, and your passage reminded me of a Larry Niven short story which points out that linking the same possessive pronoun to different objects similarly glosses over very different states of affairs: E.g. the phrases "my foot", "my chair", and "my wife".<BR/><BR/>I think the story was "Grammar Lesson", and was published in a collection called <I>Convergent Series</I>.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7345275.post-1136843064751661682006-01-09T16:44:00.000-05:002006-01-09T16:44:00.000-05:00I'm hoping that Orlando Bloom is a reasonable choi...<I>I'm hoping that Orlando Bloom is a reasonable choice for the lusted-after-man role -- feedback, ladies? </I><BR/><BR/>While I don't qualify to answer the question, my wife has a couple of dozen friends who would vigorously assent. <BR/><BR/>(Here via Ezra Klein)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com