Is ignorance really bliss? Is the quest for knowledge really worth it in the end?
Should people bother to find out about things? Would people be better off if they remained oblivious to “stuff”?
…You know. Stuff like that.
Please share your comments, and I’ll post my two cents later. I have stuff I gotta do.
‘Ignorance is bliss’ is a cliche - much closer to ‘what you don’t know won’t hurt you’ than to any serious philosophical inquiry. All respect, but anyone who thinks ‘ignorace is bliss’ is a true statement probably isn’t posting on this board.
First of all lets get one thing strait:
Dan loves you!
Want another freind? We can chat on MSN-IM if you want.
Innocence is doom.
The baby needs the mother…
The wife needs the husband…
The loner needs the freind…
The mind needs understanding!
Is laying around and doing nothing bliss?
The same is true with a person’s ability to face problems and paradoxis in the mind that are also in the environment in which thee lives.
With love from Dan~
I particularly liked this passage.
ignorance is only bliss if the ignorant has no knowledge of their ignorance, and no one to tell them of their ignorance.or they advocate a certain pride in knowing nothing.
To know, imagine, think and find out are instincts of the creative and productive mind. This knowledge thus accumulated does not go away when the philosopher or scholar dies, is accumulated into to gross knowledge of mankind, which could only benefit and help in the long term advancement of mankind.
Knowledge is the ultimate foundation of civilization, ignorance is not bliss, but sagregation and decay.
I am tempted to mention a recent “reality” show on British TV in which three members of the public were fooled into believing that they had been sent into outer space when they were, in fact, in a shuttle simulator. What interested me most about the programme was the justification given by the participants’ relatives (who had to give consent on the contestants’ behalf) - they claimed that being fooled into believing one was in space was still a desirable experience, unobtainable by most people. In other words, their ignorance would mean that they derived something unique from the experience, even if it was predicated on a lie.
However, pushing this example even further, we can see how crucial the role of the “Other” who pulls the strings is to the structure of this “bliss”. So the problem with extending the example to our daily lives is that (unless we subscribe to some religious belief) there is no omnipotent Other out there who is overseeing the structure of our ignorance. Indeed, for those who know of Nozick’s “experience machine”, I would dare to suggest that this is precisely what separates the experience machine from reality… In reality, there is no Other, whereas the machine will always require a human programmer.
I personally feel that “ignorance is bliss” is not only philosophical cliche, but also a terrible excuse for intellectual laziness.
Acoording to the statement, “ignorance is bliss”, we can inferr that the most ignorant of people in society are also some of the most happy people out there. This is, in my humble opinion, terribly inaccurate.
Take illiterate people, for example. Their lack of knowledge of how to read or write severly limits what they can do in todays world. It truly limits thier other capabilities. How this could help make you incredibly happ, I have no clue.
In some cases, you are better-off for not knowing something. But we should not take this principle to the extreme by making it a “universally” true (by this I mean, “a principle that applies in every situation”) statement…
…just my humble thoughts, anyways.
It’s been my observation that people with little knowledge can experience extremes of suffering. On one hand, they can get into trouble easily as the things that most of us know to avoid they don’t.
However, people with little knowledge also tend to not suffer from anxiety very much. They don’t worry, they just do. That of course amounts to a lot less suffering, for them, but might result in suffering for others. They tend to not worry, so the misery of others doesn’t both them.
I think that I have met some people that strike the ultimate balance between being street smart enough to stay out of basic trouble and thoughtless enough to enjoy all of their activities. Personally, it looks pretty good to me, but if I could press a button and end up like that, would I? Would you?
Good point. I totally agree that ignorance is bliss in the sense that the ignorant may live a relatively anxiety-free life. I personally almost covet this.
But, is it worth it’s cost? I’d argue Not by a long shot. Philosophy will not bring you bliss, either. Philosophy brings you “personal-reality” and often times, brings you a less-than-beatuifull understanding of life. But at least it is an accurate view of life.
In that sense, I can rest knowing that I’m not intentionally missing anything that life is offering me, if you catch my drift.
Yep, I agree with your post. I would rather an accurate view of life, but the devil is in the details.
Didn’t the Greeks describe the mentally retarded as the children of the gods as they were generally happy individuals.
This goes back to Adlerian’s claim regarding knowledge and anxiety.
Yes.
No.
This is still Ignorance, though. Do not confuse Knowledge with curiousity. You can still learn new things without knowing anything. In fact, if you knew everything how could you learn new things?
A child is a perfect example. Always asking questions. Always innocently trying to learn about every perspective possible without ‘knowing’ anything. Nothing is set in stone in the child’s mind because it thinks there is just too much more to learn for anything to be concrete just yet.
So be curious, expect the unexpected, and don’t know anything. This is bliss.
I don’t really agree. I think we ought to have a rich database of knowledge from which we access the world and amass more knowledge.
But the child example that was given made me think that we should be more flexible in handling the knowledge that we’ve gained, accepting new pieces of information, summarising the info that we have, and finally, leaving ample space in our mind to explore un-thought-of ideas and to imagine and dream.
I also think that ignorance may have its value, but it’s worth much less than knowledge. Human have always and will always value knowledge I suppose, all ancient civilizations have attributed god(s) to the job of handeling knowledge and wisdom, no one thought ignorance was worth guarding though.
Then again, if a fairy presented us with a single wish, would any of you choose to know everything? (what about choose to know nothing? perhaps either are way too extreme for the human mind to comprehend.
You can’t have everything… Where would you put it ?
Aristotle once said, “All men desire to know.” (and he was an ancient greek!).
The difference between metally-handicapped people and “ignorance-is-bliss” is this:
People who are born mentally-handicapped do not know any better. The mentally handicapped can live as happily as it is possible to live for those who are mentally-handicapped.
Whereas, “Ignorance-is-bliss” attempts to make the assertion that all forms of ignorance, including “intentional” ignorance, will bring the greatest possible amount of happiness.
Lack of knowledge is not to blaim, because it does not account for lack of interest.
But ignorantia, as in lack of knowing for which the subject is responsible, suffering its consequences, is condemnable. As trivia, in Corinthians, cap. 14, verse 38, there lies written “one who ignores shall be ignored.”
It’s not knowing everything that is important, but aspiring to gain experience from everything you encounter. Opennes towards culture of any kind, desire to find out, as opposed to complacency and comfortable numbness, that;s what makes geniuses.
Now of course… intelectuals and ones who acquire an extended knowledge are seldom happy… but comparing the satisfaction derived from that one moment when you’ve conquered the Everest with the contemptness of slacking off, I prefer the first one.
computer games are bliss and idiots cant make video games.
its true.
What exactly are “the bliss” being ignorant of and who exactly are ignorant?
“oh that dumb dude has NO idea of the reality surroundind him ; he is so bliss”, so ignorance is bliss?
Can anyone in the world boast NOT beign ignorant, anyone?