11 December 2000 - Diogenes 2

Plato defined man as the featherless biped. According to legend, Diogenes the Dog replied by plucking a rooster: “Here is Plato’s man!” Diogenes, who had about the same opinion of people as of ready-to-roast chickens, probably thought he was agreeing with Plato. Plato, more concerned with appearances, amended the definition to “featherless biped with broad nails”, seemingly missing the point. Did Platonic ideals originate as selections of unrelated traits that coincidentally happen to be true, as far as you’ve seen?

Aesop’s moral: This is still how philosophy works.