Q: In the line "wherefore art thou Romeo," what does "wherefore" mean?
A. Why
This is not an intrepetive question. There is an actual right and wrong answer. The archaic word, "wherefore" became, not "where" but "for [what reason]."
Juliet has just been hit on by the hottest guy she's ever seen, and then she learns his name, and with it, what family he belongs to. Having learned his name, she realizes that he's totally off limits. Which totally sucks. So she goes out alone and says
O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name;
Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
And I'll no longer be a Capulet.
She's saying that it's his name that's in the way, and he should give it up, or if he won't, she'll give up hers to be with him.
Q. If "Some men are doctors," and "Some doctors are tall," does it follow that "Some men are tall?"
A. No
Realistically, given the preceding information, it is likely that some men are tall. But that is not the question. The question says "If A is true and B is true, does that mean that C is true?" And in this case, it is only likely that some men are tall. It is not proven by the given information. If "All men are doctors" and "Some men are tall," then it follows that "some doctors are tall." But the question as stated leaves room for the possibility that the only tall doctors are women.
1 comment:
You know, the next time someone quibbles on the doctor question, you could say, "Some men are doctors. Some doctors are women. Does this mean some men are women?"
Post a Comment