1001Philosophers

Nicholas of Autrecourt Quotes on Truth

Nicholas of Autrecourt was a French scholastic philosopher of the early fourteenth century, sometimes called the medieval Hume for the radical skeptical critique of Aristotelian causal reasoning he developed at the University of Paris. This page collects quotes attributed to Nicholas of Autrecourt on the topic of truth, drawn from across the philosopher's works.

Quotes

  • Attributed to Nicholas of Autrecourt:

    “From the existence of one thing the existence of another cannot be inferred with certainty.”

  • Attributed to Nicholas of Autrecourt:

    “Only what can be reduced to the principle of non-contradiction is evident.”

  • Attributed to Nicholas of Autrecourt:

    “Aristotle was less certain in his conclusions than his commentators have made him.”

  • Attributed to Nicholas of Autrecourt:

    “Probability is the most that natural philosophy can attain.”

  • Attributed to Nicholas of Autrecourt:

    “We should be modest about how much our reasoning truly proves.”