the value doubt

Values of Doubt
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Values of Doubt
The Oracle of Delphi s revelation that Socrates was the wisest man on earth is one that caught him with surprise. As far as Socrates was concerned, he was not the wisest man on earth because he knew he had his shortcomings confesses to being ignorant of the answers to many questions that he encountered in his life. However, since lying is against the nature of gods, the Oracle of Delphi could not be lying.
Values of Socrates Doubts and importance in making people better, stronger, and free
Socrates set on a mission to ascertain if he was the wisest. Socrates interviewed a politician and a renowned philosopher who were regarded by people and by themselves to have wisdom. An explanation by the Socrates to the two samples of his examination that they thought themselves wise but were not resulted in enmity towards him by the two personalities and those who were around. From the research, Socrates learnt that what the personalities perceived to be wisdom was ignorance. Their belief of wisdom was colored by people s belief that they were wise thus; there were reasons to doubt their wisdom. Socrates was better than his two folks who thought that they knew but did not know. Being ignorant of one s knowledge enables individuals to be open for absorption of knowledge. Individuals who doubt their knowledge live free lives because they do not get offended when their knowledge is questioned. This makes them better people because they are open for corrections and eager to learn.

Dangers of doubting one s knowledge
Socrates method of doubting his knowledge is important for those pursuing wisdom because it makes them open for corrections and absorption of more knowledge. However, this type of knowledge also presents dangers to the individuals. Doubting that you know can drive individuals to seek knowledge from other areas and individuals whom they think knows what they want to know. Just as Socrates encountered enmity when he was on a mission to know the wisest man on earth, people who doubt what they know often fall victim of inadequate knowledge. This is dangerous for one s knowledge because it taints the original knowledge and forces the individual to believe the knowledge from the reference. This is particularly dangerous if ones original knowledge is influenced by that of a person who did not know but claimed to know. Individuals who doubt their knowledge are prone to making wrong decisions influenced by other people s knowledge.
The knowledge of ignorance inspires courage to face death
Every individual has been directly or indirectly affected by death; this qualifies that death is a reality. Because we are still alive, we cannot completely approve the existence of death because it has not happened in our lives. In a class of philosophy, a student is asked to define his world. The student responds that his life is all that he knows and has happened in his life. His argument is based on the knowledge of ignorance. It is because our lives encompass everything we do and experience including those done by the people around us. His reasoning is based on the knowledge of ignorance that raises questions even in things that are proved to happen in reality. This knowledge helps in developing courage in the face of death because persons can doubt the existence of death until it happens in their lives.
Comparison between Socrates knowledge of ignorance and Descartes Radical Doubt of meditation
Socrates knowledge of ignorance relates to Descartes s radical doubts on meditation. Knowledge of ignorance bases its arguments and reasoning that all that an individual knows can be subjected to doubt because people tend to think that they know while in the real sense they do not know. Conversely, Descartes s meditations are grounded on refuting the knowledge in all that is true then analyzes the parts carefully to come up with elements that can be believed. In his first meditation, Descartes meditates on all the things that he has believed to false in his life, he then goes ahead to explore the knowledge and reasoning that he has formed around everything that he believes to be false. This first meditation relates to Socrates knowledge of doubt because they doubt the bodies of knowledge that they form from their meditations and knowledge. Unlike Descartes, who tries to form new arguments and reasons in the bodies of knowledge that he acquires during meditation, Socrates form doubts around his knowledge and believes that he does not want to assume that he knows when he might not know.

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