Hobson's choice

Hobson's Choice is often used not to mean a false illusion of choice, but simply a choice between two undesirable options. The difference between this and the original meaning of Hobson's Choice is subtle, so the confusion is perhaps understandable. (Indeed, if the horse in the stall nearest the door is in poor shape, the traditional usage of Hobson's Choice becomes the more common use, since having an unhealthy horse and having no horse at all are both undesirable.) A modern phrase that more accurately fits Thomas Ward's poem would be the phrase "Take it or leave it". While another common phrase that could be said to generaliz ...

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Hobson's choice, Hobson's choice - Modern usage, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in politics, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in law, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in media

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Catch-22 is a 1961 novel by American novelist Joseph Heller. It was adapted into a feature film in 1970 The novel follows Captain Yossarian, a fictional World War II US Army Air Corps B-25 bombardier, and a number of other American airmen during World War II. They are based on the island of Pianosa, west of Italy. A sequel to Catch-22, Closing Time, was written by Heller and published in 1994. Catch-22 - The title. A magazine excerpt from the novel was originally published as "Ca ...

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• Catch-22 - The title
• Catch-22 - The concept
• Catch-22 - Themes
• Catch-22 - Characters in the book

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Choice consists of that mental process of thinking involved with the process of judging the merits of multiple options and selecting one for action. Simple examples can involve deciding whether to get up in the morning or go back to sleep, or selecting a given route to make a journey across a country. Most people generally regard having choices as a good thing. But a severely limited or artificially restricted choice can lead to discomfort with choosing or even to unsatisfactory outcomes. On the contrary, unlimited choice may l ...

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• Choice - In economics and politics
• Choice - In philosophy
• Choice - In law
• Choice - In psychology

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The paradox known as Buridan's ass was not originated by Buridan himself. It is first found in Aristotle's De Caelo where Aristotle asked how a dog faced with the choice of two equally tempting meals could rationally choose between the two. Buridan nowhere discusses this specific problem but its relevance is that he did advocate a moral determinism whereby, save for ignorance or impediment, a human faced by alternative courses of action must always choose the greater good. Buridan allowed that the will could delay the choice in ...

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Catch 22 has become a term, inspired by Joseph Heller's novel Catch-22, describing a general situation in which A must have been preceded by B, and B must have been preceded by A. Symbolically, where either A or B must come into being first. A familiar example of this circumstance occurs in the context of job searc ...

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• Catch-22 logic - Example

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Damned if you do, damned if you don't refers to a Catch-22 situation in which one is placed into an unfavorable situation no matter what choice one makes. It is representative of an impossible-to-escape, unwinnable situation. A similar situation is termed the lesser of two evils, in which two evils exist, and one must decide the lesser of the two. Catch-22 logic - Scenario example. Consider the Kobayashi Maru exam in the Star Trek universe: in it, a cadet assumes a command position on a starship tha ...

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Catch-22 logic, Catch-22 logic - Damned if you do damned if you don't, Catch-22 logic - Scenario example

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See also: rational choice theory, public choice theory, social choice theory Consumerist advocates of consumption in general and advertising in particular join boosters of representative democracy in singing the praises and assuming the virtues of choice. In the political sphere, the constraints of a two-party system often frustrate both voters and politicians. Choice-advocates often pair the virtues of choice with the responsibilities of responsibility. Note that the consequences of a personal choice may impact on other people, and any associat ...

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Choice, Choice - In economics and politics, Choice - In philosophy, Choice - In law, Choice - In psychology

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Catch-22 is a critique of bureaucracy in general. The phrase "catch-22" has come into common use to mean a cyclical conundrum, or "no-win situation" based on its meaning in the book as described below. A catch-22 situation is also inherently self-defeating: the very act of performing it prevents it from happening. Within the book, "catch-22" is a military rule, the circular logic of which most notably prevents anyone from avoiding combat missions: One may only be excused from flying bombing missions on the grounds ...

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Catch-22, Catch-22 - The title, Catch-22 - The concept, Catch-22 - Themes, Catch-22 - Characters in the book

Read more here: » Catch-22: Encyclopedia II - Catch-22 - The concept

Philosophically, having choice implies the existence of free will and the antithesis of fate, chance and predestination. For a dramatic highlighting of the arbitrariness and cruelty of severely imposed and prescribed choice, see the central image of Sophie's Choice. Some people draw a distinction between choice (implying almost-random selection) and a decision - a selection which purportedly precludes going back or altering the selection. An example of the power of choice occurs in the Mansion of Man ...

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Choice, Choice - In economics and politics, Choice - In philosophy, Choice - In law, Choice - In psychology

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Another theme is that of the folly of patriotism and honor, which leads most of the airmen to accept Catch-22s and being lied to by abusive bureaucrats, but which Yossarian never accepts as a legitimate answer to his complaints. One of the many strange aspects of this book is that, despite the fact that the (official) villains are the Germans, no German soldiers ever actually appear in the story. As the narrative progresses, Yossarian comes to fear American bureaucrats more than he fears the Germans a ...

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Catch-22, Catch-22 - The title, Catch-22 - The concept, Catch-22 - Themes, Catch-22 - Characters in the book

Read more here: » Catch-22: Encyclopedia II - Catch-22 - Themes

Robert Wodelarke, Provost of King's College, had begun preparations for the founding of a new college as early as 1459 when he bought tenements on which the new college could be built. The preparation cost him a great deal of his private fortune (he was suspected of diverting King's College funds), and he was forced to scale down the scale of the foundation to only three Fellows. He stipulated that they must study theology and philosophy only. Wodelarke may have chosen the name in homage to the mother of King Henry VI who was called C ...

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St Catharine's College Cambridge, St Catharine's College Cambridge - History, St Catharine's College Cambridge - Famous Alumni

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See List of eponyms (L-Z) An asterisk designates people who became eponyms despite their stated wishes not to. ...

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List of eponyms, List of eponyms - A, List of eponyms - B, List of eponyms - C, List of eponyms - D, List of eponyms - E, List of eponyms - F, List of eponyms - G, List of eponyms - H, List of eponyms - I - J, List of eponyms - K, List of eponyms - L - Z

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The New American, published by the John Birch Society, used the term "Hobson's Choice" to describe mainstream media outlets that purport to offer a range of choices to viewers/readers, while in reality doling out the same homogenized propaganda. Americans have more than one TV channel and more than one newspaper. Yet they all seem to parrot the same Establishment line. The media mavens kindly present "conservative" and "liberal" solutions to the problems of the day. But often genuine solution ...

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Hobson's choice, Hobson's choice - Modern usage, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in politics, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in law, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in media

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Then-Associate Justice William H. Rehnquist used the term in his dissenting opinion in City of Philadelphia v. New Jersey (1978), 437 U.S. 617, and in citing a lower court ruling in his majority opinion in Upjohn Co. v. United States (1981), 449 U.S. 383. The Maryland Court of Appeals used the term and explained its origins as applied to a jury's decision making ability when a prosecutor nolle prosequi's a lesser-included offense (e.g. second-degree murder or manslaughter), requiring a jury to convict a defendant of the greater crime (e.g. first-degree murder) or nothing at al ...

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Hobson's choice, Hobson's choice - Modern usage, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in politics, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in law, Hobson's choice - Hobson's Choice in media

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