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DimensionX
King of Birds


Registered: 09/26/07
Posts: 5,486
Loc: Australia
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Origin of the word fallacy
#7541694 - 10/21/07 06:32 AM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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I had a thought today about the similarity between the words fallacy and the word phallus. It struck me that much of the fallacy’s of human thought come from the metaphorical phallus region of the body. I wonder if this is a coincidence?
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Booby
Agent Mulder

Registered: 09/14/05
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Re: Origin of the word fallacy [Re: DimensionX]
#7541701 - 10/21/07 06:45 AM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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There may be a coonection in that Fallacy is related to Sophistry - "a person belonging to this class at a later period who, while professing to teach skill in reasoning, concerned himself with ingenuity and specious effectiveness rather than soundness of argument." http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sophist
Both phallus and sophist come from the Greek.
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NiamhNyx
I'm NOT a 'he'



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Re: Origin of the word fallacy [Re: Booby]
#7542348 - 10/21/07 11:26 AM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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I got this from etymonline.com, an etymological dictionary. What a handy little resource...
fallacy 1481, "deception, false statement," from L. fallacia "deception," from fallax (gen. fallacis) "deceptive," from fallere "deceive." Specific sense in logic dates from 1552.
phallus 1613, "an image of the penis," from L. phallus, from Gk. phallos "penis," also "carving or image of an erect penis (symbolizing the generative power in nature) used in the cult of Dionysus," from PIE *bhel-no-, from base *bhel- "to inflate, swell" (cf. O.N. boli "bull," O.E. bulluc "little bull," and Gk. phalle "whale," see bole). Used of the penis itself (often in symbolic context) from 1924, originally in jargon of psychoanalysis. Phallic "pertaining to the phallus" (1789) is from Gk. phallikos, from phallos. First record of phallic symbol is from 1907.
So it looks like a no, they are not from the same root. Interesting thought, though!
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Icelander
The Minstrel in the Gallery



Registered: 03/15/05
Posts: 95,368
Loc: underbelly
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Re: Origin of the word fallacy [Re: NiamhNyx]
#7542372 - 10/21/07 11:34 AM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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Well, we're guys. WTF do you think is on our minds. phallus,
-------------------- "Don't believe everything you think". -Anom. " All that lives was born to die"-Anom. With much wisdom comes much sorrow, The more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes circa 350 BC
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BlueCoyote
Beyond



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Re: Origin of the word fallacy [Re: Icelander]
#7546173 - 10/22/07 09:49 AM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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I prefer boobs 
edit: But of course, one coukd conjure it up from 'false' or 'fall', as well...
Edited by BlueCoyote (10/22/07 01:05 PM)
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