Journal of Philosophy, Inc. Tasks, Super-Tasks, and the Modern Eleatics Author(s): Paul Benacerraf Reviewed work(s): Source: The Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 59, No. 24 (Nov. 22, 1962), pp. 765-784 Published by: Journal of Philosophy, Inc. Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2023500 . Accessed: 18/03/2012 17:44 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact
[email protected]. Journal of Philosophy, Inc. is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Journal of Philosophy. http://www.jstor.org VOLUMELIX, No. 24 NOVEMBER22, 1962 THE JOURNALOF PHILOSOPHY TASKS, SUPER-TASKS, AND THE MODERN ELEATICS * MANY years ago Zeno of Elea raised some questions concern- ing the possibility of motion. He presented arguments de- signed to show that motion was impossible: that any claim that motion had really taken place was self-contradictory. I don 't believe that anyone holds this view today-which proves that some things eventually become evident, even to philosophers. So I won't try to show that motion is really possible. However, the difficulties Zeno raised were far from silly. They were grounded in legitimate problems concerning space and time, and, although what he claimed to have shown seems to be false, there is far from universal agreement on just what was wrong with his arguments.