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Literary notes about Plurality (AI summary)

The term "plurality" emerges in literature as a versatile concept applied in both concrete and abstract contexts. In some works, it denotes tangible multiplicity—for example, it is used to describe the custom of taking multiple wives in various cultures ([1], [2], [3], [4], [5]) or to indicate a narrow electoral margin ([6]) and a division of governmental responsibilities ([7]). In philosophical and scientific writings, however, "plurality" often signifies a diversity of ideas, hypotheses, aims, or modes that enrich understanding—illustrated by its role in highlighting multiple approaches to knowledge and inquiry ([8], [9], [10], [11], [12], [13]). Moreover, the usage extends to broader metaphysical reflections, suggesting that unity may emerge from or conceal an inherent manifoldness in objects or phenomena ([14], [15], [16]). Collectively, these examples underscore the term's capacity to encapsulate both the physical presence of many parts and the epistemological insights derived from complexity.
  1. NOTE 5.—"The Mongols are not prohibited from having a plurality of wives; the first manages the domestic concerns, and is the most respected.
    — from The Travels of Marco Polo — Volume 1 by Marco Polo and da Pisa Rusticiano
  2. They have seldom more than one wife, yet the plurality of wives is not denyed them by their customs.
    — from The Journals of Lewis and Clark, 1804-1806 by William Clark and Meriwether Lewis
  3. They have Sildom more than one wife, yet plurality of wives are not denyed them by their Customs.
    — from The Journals of Lewis and Clark, 1804-1806 by William Clark and Meriwether Lewis
  4. David had a plurality of wives, and was a man after [Pg 777] God's own heart.
    — from History of Woman Suffrage, Volume I
  5. Moses, Gideon, and Joshua had each a plurality of wives.
    — from History of Woman Suffrage, Volume I
  6. On the contrary, Clinton was elected to both offices by a considerable plurality.
    — from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson
  7. Thus, this plurality of magistrates decreases the activity of the government without increasing its power.
    — from Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
  8. What a plurality of hypotheses does for the scientific investigator, a plurality of stated aims may do for the instructor.
    — from Democracy and Education: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education by John Dewey
  9. Their dictum, that all knowledge must be attained through "relation, plurality, and difference," is not true.
    — from Know the Truth: A Critique on the Hamiltonian Theory of Limitation by Jesse Henry Jones
  10. Hence, it cannot be known by plurality or relation, difference or likeness.
    — from Know the Truth: A Critique on the Hamiltonian Theory of Limitation by Jesse Henry Jones
  11. There is, of course, a kaleidoscopic mingling of wishes throughout life, and a single given act may contain a plurality of them.
    — from Introduction to the Science of Sociology by E. W. Burgess and Robert Ezra Park
  12. There is "a plurality of modes," and there is "a knowledge of that plurality."
    — from Know the Truth: A Critique on the Hamiltonian Theory of Limitation by Jesse Henry Jones
  13. A conception is possible only "under relation, difference, and plurality."
    — from Know the Truth: A Critique on the Hamiltonian Theory of Limitation by Jesse Henry Jones
  14. Plurality (the Quantity).
    — from Kant's Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics by Immanuel Kant
  15. Unity (monism) is a need of inertia; Plurality in interpretation is a sign of strength.
    — from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book III and IV by Nietzsche
  16. But it is possible, he says, that the same thing may both be one, and yet have in it a plurality of things.
    — from The City of God, Volume I by Bishop of Hippo Saint Augustine

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