wisdom,humor and faith

Through Plato’s Apology and Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Self-Reliance” both contend that living an unexamined life is living a life of ignorance and futility. On the other hand, living an examined life is living an enlightened life full of intelligence. I agree with Plato and Emerson’s similar ideas that without knowledge, life as it is, is not worth living. They both argue that having personal beliefs creates an intelligent society. Having knowledge allows for one to set goals and objectives to achieve within a lifetime, which gives purpose to one’s life.

Some would argue that the difference between an accomplished and unaccomplished person is confidence. Ralph Waldo Emerson certainly upholds this belief throughout his discourse entitled “Self-Reliance,” with the characterization of a man who holds on tight to what he believes in as being the best kind of man. Emerson argues that original and unique thought is necessary for true education and that conformance and perpetuation are the great hindrances to mankind. By putting the very things that he is advocating on display, Emerson’s contention is well-argued to the audience with his use of inclusive language, allusion, and individualized rhetoric. It is this use of confidence by Emerson, that allows his argument to be well-received and seem

It has been said that intelligence and/ or knowledge can be both a curse and a blessing. The book “Frankenstein” portrays this idea perfectly. Intelligence can be a wonderful gift that brings many great things, but at what cost? Would you seek all the knowledge in the world if you knew that it would bring you only pain and suffering? These two questions help qualify the validity of the statement that intelligence or knowledge can be both a curse and a blessing.

1) Wisdom is thought to be the collective and individual experience of applying knowledge to the solution of problems.

It cannot be obtained only through age, but in overcoming perilous scenarios and succeeding in experience-filled events. The growing definition of the word “wisdom” sets a feeling to the reader as though she did

In his article “The Neglect of the Intellect: Sloth,” Mortimer J. Adler asserts that the disuse of a person’s intellect is a moral injustice. Adler coins the term “sloth” to describe the people committing this moral crime. He believes that people should use their intellectual abilities for their own personal pleasure rather than for economic or political gain. Adler employs an aggressive tone when describing the abuse of the intellect, and appeals to the reader’s emotion when portraying intellect as a way the only way to live a morally good life. Adler’s purpose is to convince his readers that intellect should be used solely for the purpose of increasing knowledge. While Adler’s article gives a reasonably convincing argument about learning for your own well-being, he fails to support his claims, baffles his readers with the overuse of intelligent sounding words, and neglects to explain why you should be intellectual just for the sake of it.

"There are many definitions of wisdom but one of the best understanding I have received is that wisdom is knowledge gained through suffering." - Elaine Heath

In today’s world, knowledge is useless without the wisdom to apply it to real life situations. The great biblical author, King Solomon, once wrote, “How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver!” (Proverbs 16:16). Wisdom is the quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment. In Chaim Potok’s novel The Chosen, the main characters Reb Saunders and David Malters display their immense wisdom when raising their children. In addition Danny Saunders also shows wisdom with the way he handles his friendship with Reuven Malters. The theme of wisdom exists throughout the chosen but, it remains mostly evidenced by the characters Reb Saunders, Danny Saunders, and David Malter.

Without knowledge and wisdom the future CEOs, political figures and activists leaders would not be enlightened to be who they are today. The leaders listed above all have a few things in common: improving an aspect of life, venturing, passionate. Don’t we all have these qualities in common too? Knowledge creates a catalyst that allows people to use their knowledge and impact the world. Who wouldn't want to impact the world? Yet, possibly without knowledge Captain Sully Sullenberger would not have landed U.S. Airways flight on the Hudson, Henry Ford workers would not be able to afford his cars and Neil Armstrong would never set foot on the moon. Knowledge and wisdom increases happiness by, allowing everyone to wake up everyday knowing they’re legacy is positively impacting the

Reuven and Danny constantly mature and grow as young adults. Although, their fathers may disagree, they both serve the same purpose when providing wisdom. Reuven and his father have a strong relationship and his father teaches him more wisdom that he understands. When Reuven inquire’s a new question to his father, he replies with a long story,” He asked me if I had the patience to sit and listen quietly, and I nodded”(101). Spreading wisdom subsist of unique ways, and wanting to understand it shows a contrasting

At present, humanity has vast amounts of knowledge, but still very little wisdom. Buckminster Fuller called this time our final evolutionary exam. Is our species fit to survive? Can we develop the wisdom that will allow us to use our prodigious powers for our own good, and for that of many generations to come? The question then arises: What can we do to facilitate the development of wisdom? This is where the wisdom traditions—the spiritual traditions found throughout human culture—have their value. They are often seen as simply religions, but most of the great religions were seeded by wise people, people who had, in one way or another, awoken to the deeper truths of life and then sought to share their wisdom with

Wisdom is of unlimited importance in our daily lives. As humans, one cannot survive without wisdom. The Apache culture says, “Wisdom is viewed first and foremost as an instrument of survival.” (131). Like air, without wisdom humans cannot flourish. Therefore, it is of extreme importance that, as humans, we find a way to discover wisdom and integrate it into our lives. However, Wisdom is not the same for everyone and therefore how each of us finds or locates wisdom might look different. Throughout this course we have discussed the concept of place and how it can help us find infinite wisdom. The Apache people tell us that to find wisdom we must have three mental conditions “Smoothness of mind, resilience of mind, and steadiness of mind…each

When one says that this elderly person has wisdom from various life experiences, he/she is not saying that the elderly person knows much about books and their profession. Instead, one would be speaking about the elderly person’s vast knowledge about what is important in life due to their multitude of experiences. While the elderly person may not be completely wise in the most encompassing form of wisdom, the elderly person does appear to have a more expansive understanding of what is important in life. Simply knowing what matters in life, however, does not satisfy the ultimate form of wisdom, for the wise must know why these things matter in life. That is, a truly wise person must have insight beyond the theoretical, into the practical. Beyond this, a wise person, in this view, must also know how to achieve what matters most, and, in knowing so, do what matters most. I say this because a truly wise person would be able to act upon what they know to be the most important thing in life. It is wiser for a person to act than to merely conceptualize what is most essential in life.

Often regarded as the leader of the Transcendentalist literary movement, Ralph Waldo Emerson believed that the individual must look inward to find truth and knowledge. He emphatically stressed that one must practice self-reliance: the ability to trust one’s intuition and not conform to societal standards. Through the use of strict form, powerful imagery, and a wise tone, Emerson’s poem “Intellect” urges us to stay true to ourselves by refusing the practice of blind obedience.

Socrates, in skepticism, began a search for those with a reputation of wisdom. After studying men and their knowledge, he reasoned that the only true wisdom consists in knowing that you know nothing. Although one may have extensive understanding in one area, there is way too much knowledge in the world to be contained by one man. Socrates stated, “I found that the men most in repute were all but the most foolish, and that some inferior men were really wiser and better” (Plato, 23). Those who believed that they knew it all could not be more ignorant, and those who admitted ignorance achieved the highest wisdom attainable on earth. Socrates accepted the idea that he, just like all men, contained very little or no wisdom at all. He was content with knowing this, and upon meeting others that lacked this philosophy, felt he was superior to them. He was unsure of the limitations the afterlife had on wisdom, but he was aware of it’s constraints on earth. This self awareness is what gifted him with the highest sense of enlightenment.