turtles all the way down
Endless foundational support
Turtles all the way down refers to an infinite regress—the problem of what supports the thing that supports the thing.
It comes from an anecdote about someone who believes the earth rests on a giant turtle, and when asked what the turtle stands on, replies: It's turtles all the way down.
The phrase now describes any explanation that merely postpones the question indefinitely, or systems built on endless layers of underlying structure.
- chicken-or-egg questionDilemma about what started what
- begging the questionAssuming what needs proof
- groundlessnessAbsence of valid basis
- metaphorImplied identity comparison
- infinite regressUnending causal chain
argument · creation myth · stacking · mythology · substratum · flat earth · weight · belief · epistemology · first cause · layer · hawking · legend · logical fallacy · Discworld · infinity · Stephen Hawking · ancient
turtles all the way downbedrock
Solid stone underground
solid ground · first principles · unmoved mover · prime mover · foundationalism
turtle, turtles, way, ways, down, downs, downed, downing, all