Eo ipso

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eo ipso is a technical term used in philosophy. It means "by that very fact" in Latin. Example: That I am does not eo ipso mean that I think.

It is also used, with the same meaning, in law.

In The Crisis and a Crisis in the Life of an Actress by Søren Kierkegaard, the philosopher describes the quality of Eo ipso in the following excerpt:

But to be gallant towards an artist is precisely the highest degree of insolence, a maudlin impertinence and a disgusting kind of intrusiveness. Anyone who is something, and is something essentially, possesses "eo ipso," the claim to be recognized for exactly this special thing, and for nothing more or less. (p. 69)