I've been working on this for about a week.
Some people say knowledge is power. Some say knowledge hurts. Some say even though it hurts it is better to know than to remain in ignorance. Still, some consider hodging knowledge so as to protect their loved ones.
All of these views on knowledge are truisms. Knowledge is power because it foreshadows events and consequently aids in preparing for what follows.
Knowledge also hurts. For example, finding out that your best friends better half cheated on him/her, can lead to the dilemma of telling or not your best friend. You might not want to tell your friend because it would hurt them emotionally. Or you might want to tell him so he can deal with the situation before it careens out of hand. Which way is better is irrelevant to us here. However, the essence of this dilemma is that the underlying aknowledgement is that knowledge hurts, and this hurt is what you want to save your friend from.
Now if knowledge is power thats good. Right? Also, if knowledge hurts thats bad. (Assuming that anything hurts you is bad.) Right?? If the answer is yes to both questions then knowledge can be both good and bad.
Lets take a look at what the bible has to offer.
Genesis 2:15-17
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
For those unaware, this pertains to the story of Adam and Eve the first inhabitants of earth after its creation. Here knowledge is bad because it would lead to death. Right??
As everyone knows, Adam and Eve didn't heed this warning and savored some of the apples, thus, gaining knowledge. Lets follow the rest of the story.
Genesis 3:8-11
Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man. "Where are you?" He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid. And he said, " who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?
According to this biblical account Adam became aware of his surroundings and became ashamed because he wasn't clothed, something he was oblivious to initially. So were as there wasn't any negative emotion initially (assuming so because its not mentioned) he now feels shy, and inhibited because of this gained knowledge. Therefore its bad. right.
"No, no, no," you say. This is from the bible and you aren't a christian so it doesn't apply to you.
Even if you're not christian, you can see this scenario playing itself over in real life. You wouldn't catch a person outside in NYC just walking around naked. (hey, at least not most people.) Why? they are inhibited because of their awareness.
This inhibition or the negative emotion induced is bad. Right?? If you didn't know you were naked you would live in bliss. Right?? But, but but... if you live in bliss all the time wouldn't that be boring.
Aha. got cha. You are assuming that you know what bliss is and what boring is. If you don't know what these things are then how would you concern yourself with these things, or even fathom to feel them.
Some of you might prefer the way things are now, having knowledge. Some of you might still like to try new things and enjoy trying new things. Thats fine. But when will that end. When will you be content with what you have seen. When will you cease wanting more???
Knowledge is both good and bad, but it carries one more negative than the absence of knowledge does. Therefore, it is more bad than not having knowledge. Consequently, knowledge is bad. But, Knowledge exists now. There is no way of erasing all knowledge.
Let me know what you think! =)
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An interesting take on knowledge. I like how you related the Adam & Eve scenario to your blog..I'm not really sure on my opinion of knowledge though. Is ignorance really bliss or is knowledge really power? Haven't really made up my mind on that yet, but I think that if humans did not have knowledge then we would all be content because we wouldn't know anything outside or beyond us -- thus eliminating the need or want or thirst for power, knowledge or learning because we wouldn't know that it existed. So then we'd all be content, no matter how limited, with the things that we know.
But in the case of today's world, since obviously we all have knowledge of something, ignorance is not bliss but just plain ignorance and choosing to refuse to open one's mind up. I think that humans with their knowledge choose to do with it what they will, either use it for good or bad, even though the knowledge they know may be harmful or beneficial. So in a way it is power.
I don't know, I hope this make sense heh.
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"No matter what he does, every person on earth plays a central role in the history of the world. And normally he doesn't know it." -- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
Yeah it does make sense.
I'm really glad you commented.
I am having a hard time making up my mind also.
Cupcake Bunny
I love reading things about knowledge, and then comparing it to my take on wisdom. I really enjoyed how you tied it to the story of Adam and Eve; I've never really heard it from that perspective; of being ignorant and whether knowledge can be helpful or hurtful.
But I sometimes like to compare conventional knowledge to conventional wisdom; that is, knowing something vs. being able to use what you know. So, whether or not knowing a particular fact is helpful or harmful (knowing your best friend's other half is cheating on him/her), true wisdom is knowing what to do with that knowledge, which you touched on in your blog. And I am not afraid to say that there is no definite solution to that situation or any situation that requires wisdom.