All his life the example of a syllogism he had studied in Kiesewetter's logic - "Caius is a man, men are mortal, therefore Caius is mortal" - had seemed to him to be true only in relation to Caius the man, man in general, and it was quite justified , but he wasn't Caius and he wasn't man in general, and he had always been something quite, quite special apart from all other beings; he was Vanya, with Mama, with Papa, with Mitya and Volodya, with his toys and the coachman, with Nyanya, then with Katenka, with all the joys, sorrows, passions of childhood, boyhood, youth. Did Caius know the smell of the striped leather ball Vanya loved so much?: Did Caius kiss his mother's hand like that and did the silken folds of Caius's mother's dress rustle like that for him? Was Caius in love like that? Could Caius chair a session like that? And Caius is indeed mortal and it's right that he should die, but for me, Vanya, Ivan Ilych, with all my feelings and thoughts - for me it's quite different. And it cannot be that I should die. It would be too horrible. . Leo Tolstoy
About This Quote

The Doctor's story, I felt, was a perfect example of a syllogism. Syllogisms can be a powerful tool in argumentation. When used effectively they can present a foolproof argument, or at least a strong one, while being relatively simple to understand. The Doctor's story is a good example because it's interesting and easy to understand. In the story he explains how he came to believe that logic was his best friend.

In fact it seems, from the outside at least, that this is exactly what he did. He came to believe that logic was his best friend because he came to believe that logic was the way of the world. In the story he summarizes his life and how he came to learn about logic and why logic is important. He did this because it sounds like something that would make a good explanation for why he uses logic in his life.

It also fits the flow of the story well, as it provides a start and then a conclusion. The Doctor's story might not be perfect but it sure does make for an interesting read!

Source: The Death Of Ivan Ilych

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  1. I think... if it is true that there are as many minds as there are heads, then there are as many kinds of love as there are hearts.
  2. Respect was invented to cover the empty place where love should be.
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  5. They've got no idea what happiness is, they don't know that without this love there is no happiness or unhappiness for us--there is no life.
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