“The decisive step in Dante's reflections occurs with the assertion that originally, in an unhistorical time before man's revolt against God—symbolized for Dante in the construction of the tower of Babel—there was only a single language for all men. The fragmentation of this original language begins with the erection of the tower of Babel and, what is essential to this, work—the variety of differently structured activities. For Dante work means to convey a meaning to natural things and thereby to transform them with regard to some particular yet unattained goal.”

—  Ernesto Grassi

Source: Rhetoric as Philosophy (1980), p. 77

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

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Ernesto Grassi 12
Italian philosopher 1902–1991

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