Don't Call A Pirot Happy Until He is Dead

In his lectures on Grice, Geary (who attended) miswrote the reference:

"one swallow does not make a meal"

Geary said Grice said.

But of course, the problem is 'ear', which is the Aristotle word here. "Surely that depends on when swallows returned to Athens: spring or summer?", Grice enquires. "The decision will yield results as to whether we take Greek 'air' to be polysemous or not".

Alas, Erasmus, who should have known better, only confuses us when he writes:


ERASM. A.

Una hirunda non facit ver.

One swallow does not make spring

1539. TAVERNER 25

It is not one swalowe that bryngeth in somer.
It is not one good quality that meketh a man good.

Aristotle's point, Grice notes, is that it's not ONE DAY that makes a pig (or pirot) happy: it's the continuity in the enjoyment of _things_.

"The problem", Grice notes, "which Aristotle cleverly identified, is that even THAT may not be sufficient. A man, say, Wittgenstein, may be called _unhappy_ if all his doctrines are Mis-Quoted after he dies". "For Aristotle, the person's fame, or infame, as the case may be, even if post-mortem, may and indeed should, yield results as to our ability or confidence in desiring to call his life happy."

Geary interrupted Grice at this point:

"But surely a dead man can no longer claim that he is happy. And are you not saying that this is a matter of privileged access?"

"Right-on, Boy", Grice replied. "But I have a train to catch".

The BART he meant.

Etc.