Talk:Adynaton

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Hmmm, there is a problem with the biblical quote used there - the "eye of the needle" was a very narrow passage in Jerusalem, and the implication of the saying is that one must cast off their material wealth, as a camel must cast off their packs to pass through the passage. So perhaps this is only really adynaton if taken literally, rather than figuratively as Jesus meant. - HughJampton 12th December 2005

The problem here, although this possible interpretation has existed since the 9th century, is that there is no historical evidence that any narrow gate called the Eye of a needle existed in Jerusalem. An alternative interpretation is that the Greek for cable was mis-transcribed as camel; however it is still clearly impossible for a cable to pass through the eye of a needle, and in any case biblical scholars give little credence [1][2] to this intrepretation. The consensus view is that camel and needle both mean exactly that. --BillC 20:45, 5 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] misquote?

seems like the order of philosophers and clocks in the Sneneca quote should be reversed, in order for the quote to be humorous and a proper adynaton, but I can't find the quote anywhere else so i'll leave it. Peligro 21:08, 5 December 2005 (UTC)

The quote is to be found in the satire The pumpkinification of Claudius (traditionally ascribed to Seneca). I was working from a translation by Robert Graves to be found at the back of the book Claudius the God in which the wording was as in the article. This site translates the passage as: What hour it was I cannot certainly tell; philosophers will agree more often than clocks, but the meaning is the same. Written today, the saying is less pithy since clocks are highly accurate, but in AD 54, the year of Claudius's death, water clocks kept poor time and differed widely. --BillC 22:29, 5 December 2005 (UTC)

got it, thanks. i mistook the quote as commenting on philosophers and not clocks. --Peligro 05:57, 6 December 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Non-literary examples

Why must all of the example be literary? Surely the expression "when hell freezes over" is also an adynaton?--Pharos 23:29, 5 December 2005 (UTC)

I see no reason, though I think the usage would have to be something like "hell would freeze over before xxxx would happen". --BillC 00:31, 6 December 2005 (UTC)