If the Works of Nature are better, more exact and perfect than the Works of Art, and Art effects nothing without Reason; neither can the Works of Nature be thought to be effected without Reason... A wonder then it must needs be, that there should be any man found so stupid and forsaken of reason as to persuade himself, that this most beautiful and adorned World was or could be produced by the fortuitous concourse of Atomes. He that can prevail with himself to believe this, I do not see why he may not as well admit, that if there were made innumerable Figures of the 21 Letters in Gold, suppose, or any other Metal, and these well shaken and mixt together, and thrown down from some high place to the ground, they when they lighted upon the Earth would be so disposed and ranked, that a man might see and read in them Ennius's Annals; whereas it were a great chance if he should find one Verse thereof among them all.
Sound familiar to anyone? Of course, today the illustration is told in terms of monkeys with typewriters producing the complete works of Shakespeare...
1 comment:
Have you read an amazing short story based on a similar idea by Jorge Borges called "The Library of Babel"? Really worth a read.
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