because it holds great promise?

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(1) Does "because it holds great promise" mean "because free will holds great promise"?
If so, why not used "because it held great promise" since the author first expressed "no one was moved (to enjoy the existence of free will)"? Used past tense, then use it along in the same sentence.

(2) Does "this notion" still refer to "free will"?

Context:

It is safe to say that no one was ever moved to entertain the existence of free will because it holds great promise as an abstract idea. The endurance of this notion is attributable to the fact that most of us feel that we freely author our own thoughts and actions.

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Type: Question • Score: 1 • Views: 443 • Replies: 7

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@oristarA,

Mark: zero replies.

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@oristarA,

oristarA wrote:

(1) Does "because it holds great promise" mean "because free will holds great promise"?
If so, why not used "because it held great promise" since the author first expressed "no one was moved (to enjoy the existence of free will)"? Used past tense, then use it along in the same sentence.

The author has some liberty about the verb tenses in order to communicate the desired nuance. There's also personal preference and regional variations to take into account. The author used the past tense in "was ever" to suggest that his claim is true no matter how far back into the past you go. S/he could have used "is ever," but the nuance would be limited to the present.

However, both in the past, present and future, it is true that free will doesn't hold great promise as an abstract idea, so the simple present is used.

Quote:

(2) Does "this notion" still refer to "free will"?

Yes.

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In this sentence, the "because"simply connects two thoughts. They do not require the same verb tense.

It is safe to say that no one was ever moved to entertain the existence of free will. Free Will holds great promise as an abstract idea.

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@PUNKEY,

PUNKEY wrote:

In this sentence, the "because"simply connects two thoughts. They do not require the same verb tense.

It is safe to say that no one was ever moved to entertain the existence of free will. Free Will holds great promise as an abstract idea.

The meaning is changed then.
In your explanation, "to entertain" means "to make fun of"?

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@oristarA,

oristarA wrote:

(1) Does "because it holds great promise" mean "because free will holds great promise"?
If so, why not used "because it held great promise" since the author first expressed "no one was moved (to enjoy the existence of free will)"? Used past tense, then use it along in the same sentence.

(2) Does "this notion" still refer to "free will"?

Context:

It is safe to say that no one was ever moved to entertain the existence of free will because it holds great promise as an abstract idea. The endurance of this notion is attributable to the fact that most of us feel that we freely author our own thoughts and actions.

The writing is sloppy. He could have written:

"It is safe to say that no one is ever moved..."

He's referring to the entertaining of free will as an abstract idea in the infinitive, not the past tense. "To entertain"

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@InfraBlue,

Thanks.
What does "entertain" exactly mean here?

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@oristarA,

To entertain an idea is to consider the possibility that the idea is a good one. To treat it as a real possibility.

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because it holds great promise?

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