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Philosophical Haiku

William of Ockham (1285-1347/8 CE)

by Terence Green

A pauper’s philosophy –
Only things exist.
Excise the excess.

William from Ockham (or Occam), an otherwise obscure village in Surrey, England, was the greatest philosopher of the fourteenth century. Known as the Doctor Invincibilis, he didn’t care whom he offended, and with his rough and ready style of argument, he offended plenty of people – which eventually got him into big trouble.

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