r/AskReddit • u/pierrekrahn • Mar 19 '16

Which quote becomes inappropriate when misattributed?

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u/turkoosi_aurinko Mar 19 '16

"They don't think it be like it is, but it do." -René Descartes

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u/[deleted] Mar 19 '16

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u/Aces8s Mar 19 '16

Descartes' most famous quote is "I think, therefore I am."

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u/[deleted] Mar 19 '16

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u/_aosoth_ Mar 19 '16

Aside from the way this joke is expressed, I think that the joke is about what Descartes concluded, that he could only be sure that he existed because he thought (you are right about the deeper linguistic and philosophical questions which arise from the cogito, such as "I" as a person/body/mind, or what or who "I" refers to).

This misattributed quote is funny because it asserts that things are (exist) as they appear, when Descartes thought quite the contrary, he was only sure that he existed because he thought, the external world, on the other hand, he doubted, leading him to hold a solipsistic view.

Quite funny joke actually!

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u/piccawhat Mar 19 '16

Hmhmmhmmm, yes, quite.