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Evan asked in Arts & HumanitiesPhilosophy · 1 decade ago

Which philosopher says that everything there is to think has already been thought?

I'm pretty sure an old school philosopher has a quote that says something pretty close to this. If anyone can provide me an accurate quote with a credible source, that is an easy 10 points for you.

4 Answers

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  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    I know the Bible says it Ecc. 1:9-11

    What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. {10} Is there anything of which one can say, "Look! This is something new"? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time. {11} There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow.

    also Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said Everything has been thought of before, but the difficulty is to think of it again."

    http://www.quotedb.com/quotes/2647

  • 1 decade ago

    In the song "Serve the Servants", Kurt Cobain sang "there is nothing I could say that I haven't thought before".

  • 1 decade ago

    I think it is the philosopher OC Tross.

  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    me, i always say that its all been done before.

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