[245d]
it could not even have ever come into existenceTheaetetus
What do you mean?Stranger
That which comes into existence always comes into existence as a whole. Therefore no one who does not reckon the whole among things that are can speak of existence or generation as being.Theaetetus
That certainly seems to be true.Stranger
And moreover, that which is not a whole cannot have any quantity at all; for if it has any quantity, whatever that quantity may be, it must necessarily be of that quantity as a whole.Theaetetus
Precisely.Stranger
And so countless other problems, each one involving infinite difficulties,
What do you mean?Stranger
That which comes into existence always comes into existence as a whole. Therefore no one who does not reckon the whole among things that are can speak of existence or generation as being.Theaetetus
That certainly seems to be true.Stranger
And moreover, that which is not a whole cannot have any quantity at all; for if it has any quantity, whatever that quantity may be, it must necessarily be of that quantity as a whole.Theaetetus
Precisely.Stranger
And so countless other problems, each one involving infinite difficulties,