[...] After a lecture on cosmology and the structure of the solar system, James was accosted by a little old lady. One of the badges was "Turtles All the Way Down", which was awarded for writing a class with 10 or more levels of inheritance. All rights reserved. The Turtles All the Way Down quotes below all refer to the symbol of Circles and Spirals. Others dissented, and said, that the Earth was borne up by seven Elephants; the Elephants' feet stood on Tortoises, and they were borne by they know not what. — from Wilson, R.A. (1983, 1997) Prometheus Rising. [1] References to the saying's mythological antecedents, the World Turtle and its counterpart the World Elephant, were made by a number of authors in the 17th and 18th centuries.[2][3]. There are many versions of the “turtle” story. When all the animals had arrived, the Great Turtle told them that the appearance of a woman from the sky was a sign of good fortune. For other uses, see. translations for Turtles all the way down, https://www.definitions.net/definition/Turtles+all+the+way+down. ", "You're a very clever man, Mr. James, and that's a very good question," replied the little old lady, "but I have an answer to it. The scientist gave a superior smile before replying, "What is the tortoise standing on?" He described how the earth orbits around the sun and how the sun, in turn, orbits around the center of a vast collection of stars called our galaxy. 2. The exact origin of the phrase is uncertain. "Turtles all the way down" is an expression of the problem of infinite regress. Phoenix, AZ: New Falcon Publishers, 1983. The novel will be about a teenage girl solving the mystery of a missing billionaire, all while grappling with the same mental illness that has affected John Green himself throughout his life. Let us remember the story of the Indian philosopher and his elephant. The World Turtle is thought to carry the world on its back. It's unclear where the expression first came from, as versions of it have appeared since the mid 19th century — but one example was recorded in Stephen Hawking's book A Brief History of Time, which begins: John Green himself has written on his website that he is a Christian — though he also says that he doesn't agree with every part of Christianity. "It's turtles-turtles-turtles, all the way!”. “Like the old woman in the story who described the world as resting on a rock, and then explained that rock to be supported by another rock, and finally when pushed with questions said it was “rocks all the way down,” he who believes this to be a radically moral universe must hold the moral order to rest either on an absolute and ultimate should or on a series of shoulds “all the way down.” — William James, “Rationality, Activity and Faith”. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one: ). In the form of "rocks all the way down", the saying dates to at least 1838, when it was printed in an unsigned anecdote in the New-York Mirror about a schoolboy and an old woman living in the woods: "The world, marm," said I, anxious to display my acquired knowledge, "is not exactly round, but resembles in shape a flattened orange; and it turns on its axis once in twenty-four hours. How can we satisfy ourselves without going on in infinitum? John Green released his book with the same title in 2017. Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web! They often reference stories featuring a World Elephant, World Turtle, or other similar creatures that are claimed to come from Hindu mythology. This of course only works if … And the saying was in our mouths and minds again. "But it's turtles all the way down! The numerical value of Turtles all the way down in Chaldean Numerology is: 6, The numerical value of Turtles all the way down in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8, A well-known scientist (some say it was Bertrand Russell) once gave a public lecture on astronomy. persisted James patiently. Still, his religion is clearly important to him; he's made videos on the topic of religion, and has called for better conversations around religion to take place online. "Your theory that the sun is the centre of the solar system, and the earth is a ball which rotates around it has a very convincing ring to it, Mr. James, but it's wrong. What does Aza mean when she says, “You think you’re the painter, but you’re the canvas”? "Turtles all the way down" is a jocular expression of the infinite regress problem in cosmology posed by the "unmoved mover" paradox. "that the Earth had nine corners, whereby it was borne up by the Heaven. "But, my dear lady", Professor James asked, as politely as possible, "what holds up the turtle?" In the form "rocks all the way down", the saying appears as early as 1838. Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, University of London 3(2) (1924), pp. We truly appreciate your support. Those beasts, in turn stand on the back of another beast. When you go one step beyond the mundane system, you only excite an inquisitive humour which it is impossible ever to satisfy. Here is what you need to know about it. When asked, finally, what supports the giant turtle, he is briefly taken aback, but quickly replies ‘Ah, after that it is turtles all the way down.’”. It was never more applicable than to the present subject. Do you ever feel a similar way? Well, it turns out, "turtles all the way down" is actually an old philosophical joke — and it might just give us a clue about some of the bigger themes explored in the book. Instant downloads of all 1360 LitChart PDFs (including Turtles All the Way Down). "Turtles all the way down." And it's this: The first turtle stands on the back of a second, far larger, turtle, who stands directly under him.". Then Sturgill Simpson released his song “Turtles All the Way Down” in 2014. "Ah", she said, "that's easy. By supposing it to contain the principle of its order within itself, we really assert it to be God; and the sooner we arrive at that Divine Being, so much the better. 2020 Bustle Digital Group. STANDS4 LLC, 2020. There are many versions of the “turtle” story. Several other people have share the origin of the phrase. Web. But what's that got to do with turtles? How, therefore, shall we satisfy ourselves concerning the cause of that Being whom you suppose the Author of Nature, or, according to your system of Anthropomorphism, the ideal world, into which you trace the material? "TPL • Excerpts from H.D. inquired James politely. How to say Turtles all the way down in sign language? ", "Standing on a rock! No man stands on truth. Thoreau's journals (1852)", https://books.google.com/books?id=xxfGBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT154, "In John Green’s ‘Turtles All the Way Down,’ a Teenager’s Mind Is at War With Itself. "But, my dear lady", Professor James asked, as politely as possible, "what holds up the turtle?" The linguist John R. Ross also associates James with the phrase: The following anecdote is told of William James. When asked, finally, what supports the giant turtle, he is briefly taken aback, but quickly replies "Ah, after that it is turtles all the way down. I've got a better theory," said the little old lady. ", "The coding game: Microsoft's Visual Studio gets badges, achievements and leaderboard", "Turtles All the Way Down: Foundation, Edifice, and Ruin in Faulkner and McCarthy", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Turtles_all_the_way_down&oldid=981588689, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from November 2017, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 3 October 2020, at 07:54. For example, "Turtles All the Way Down" is the name of a song by country artist Sturgill Simpson that appears on his 2014 album Metamodern Sounds in Country Music. And, after all, what satisfaction is there in that infinite progression? .

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