Sidney Morgenbesser’s paradoxical words as he was dying of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) are not the only ones he’s known for. Here, from Wikiquote, are some of his less bitter remarks. (Remember, he was a professor of philosophy.)
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During a lecture, the Oxford linguistic philosopher J.L. Austin made the claim that although a double negative in English implies a positive meaning, there is no language in which a double positive implies a negative. To which Morgenbesser derisively called out from the audience, “Yeah, yeah.”
Asked by a student whether he agreed with Chairman Mao’s view that a statement can be both true and false at the same time, Morgenbesser replied, “Well, I do and I don’t.”
During campus protests of the 1960s, Morgenbesser was hit on the head by police. When asked whether he had been treated unfairly or unjustly, he responded that it was “unfair, but not unjust. It was unfair because they hit me over the head, but not unjust because they hit everyone else over the head.”
When challenged why he had written so little, Morgenbesser fired back: “Moses wrote one book. Then what did he do?”
Morgenbesser described Gentile ethics as entailing “ought implies can,” while in Jewish ethics, “can implies don’t.”
When asked his opinion of pragmatism, Morgenbesser replied, “It’s all very well in theory but it doesn’t work in practice.”
Asked to prove a questioner’s existence, Morgenbesser shot back, “Who’s asking?”
A student once interrupted him to complain, “I just don’t understand!” He responded, “Why should you have the advantage over me?”
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What I take away from all this is that I think I wish I’d known Morgenbesser, but maybe it’s better that I didn’t. I’d be afraid of what he’d say to me. I’m no philosopher, and I already don’t understand anything.
Is there anything more than anything for me not to understand? If there is, I’m sure Morgenbesser would have found it. And then where would I be?
ON BEING OLD 
I see the appeal for this man! “To which Morgenbesser derisively called out from the audience, “Yeah, yeah.””
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Good, isn’t it? 🙂 I also especially like “Why should you have the advantage over me?”
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Delightful post!
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Thank you!!!!
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I would have loved to have known him, I would have sat quietly , listened and enjoyed, hoping he wouldn’t notice me. If only I could find the repartee when I needed it , instead of the next day.
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Fascinating, thank you for introducing me to this wise man!
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You’re most welcome. Nice to see you here; I hope you drop by again. 🙂
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I love this! Thank you for sharing, Nina 🙂 ❤
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You’re s-o-o-o welcome, Takami! ❤
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Not sure where would you BE, but what you would BE DOING is relishing Morganbesser’s pithy retort to your question…..
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Not lacking in pithy retorts yourself, Gwen! 😀
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Yes, he sounds a good man. And I’m sure. had you known him, he would have provided a lot of smiles. That you know what you don’t know puts you in an advanced level.
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Smiles for sure. And what YOU probably don’t know yet, but will now, is that he was ordained as a rabbi before he gave it all up for philosophy. How’s that for “I do and I don’t?”
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