At the heart of the unease about these earliest works of literature were two fundamental questions: first, how could Greek literature have been born ex nihilo with two masterpieces?

对于这些早期文学作品的不安，其核心是两个基本问题：首先，希腊文学的两部杰作是如何横空出世的？

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In short, Machiavelli claims these were founders who created, in a way, ex nihilo, out of nothing.

简而言之,马奇亚维利主张这些人是创造者，换句话说即从无到有。

耶鲁公开课 - 政治哲学导论课程节选

However much of a maverick he may have been, these dreams did not pop into his head ex nihilo.

WSJ: A Man Outside His Time | Lebbeus Woods | SFMOMA | By Richard B. Woodward

The trouble is money, money ex nihilo, money for nothing.

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Throughout the ages philosophers and theologians have debated this question with respect to Judeo-Christian faiths, in which dogma holds that the world was created from the void, creation ex nihilo.

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