Well, besides the fact that he does know something and that thing is that he knows nothing, but still, do you think this is the truest statement a person can come with? Do you have a better statement that holds more "truth"?
2006-07-31 08:29:27 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Everyone will have his own take on what the meaning of what good old Socrates meant by that statement. To me he would have been declared an enlightened one had he been in the east. His words have a mystical quality to them so my take on what he meant by that statement is a little eastern flavored.
Nearing the end of his life he realized that you can know all about a thing(IE how it works, the mechanics of it) but ultimately the thing is a mystery. I don't think he was saying he didn't have any knowledge. It just means he was in a state of total humbleness in the face of the big mystery. To not be so rigid and sure of how things are.
We can have all the knowledge and facts about a sunset but having the facts about it doesn't make you "know" the essence of a sunset. It's a total mystery. It's like forgetting all the facts temporarily and seeing thru the eyes of a child. The child looks with total wonder and fascination at everything.
To me the statement that life is ultimately a mystery holds much truth. Don't know if it is the ultimate truth or more truthful than Mr. Socrates statement but it's beautiful to ponder.
2006-07-31 09:28:23 · answer #1 · answered by .. 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Personally, I live by a slightly different creed: All I know is that I can't know everything.
Believing nothing tends to make me more apathetic towards life. As a human being, I think there are things you must hold onto and grasp as "fact". Otherwise, it's hard to even make it outside of your bed! However, I must realize that these are just a convenient personal truth, rather than a completely universal fact. It is a personal truth that the sun is currently shining down on me, even though others (and even myself) might dispute the fact that the sun is currently shining or that the sun even exists. The important thing is to remain humble and realize there are plenty of things on this world and in this universe that I will never know or understand.
2006-07-31 08:38:02 · answer #2 · answered by dk 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you know nothing you know NOTHING. Socrates, being the great philosopher that he was, should have realized that he was contradicting himself and that this statement made no sense at all.
PS: Why lose 5 points yourself and give me and everyone else who responds to this 2 points? Thanks for the sacrifice anyways.
2006-07-31 08:33:55 · answer #3 · answered by I want my *old* MTV 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
No matter how much you think you know, something always happens that changes what you thought you knew. So yes I think that it is a true statement.
2006-07-31 08:34:46 · answer #4 · answered by usmc9252004 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That is like saying the more I learn the less I know. You realize the information that is out there far outweighs what you already know.
2006-07-31 08:40:29 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Spend a lifetime on that one and it still comes up as stupid.I always liked "Walk softly and carry a big stick".
2006-07-31 08:50:04 · answer #6 · answered by Balthor 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The more you know, the more true it is. As humans we have learned very little of what there is to know. As individuals, even the smartest of us know very little of that, between science, history, literature, mathematics, etc.
2006-07-31 08:38:34 · answer #7 · answered by cross-stitch kelly 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
a truely intelligent person knows that they will never know everything. if one did know everything, there would be no purpose to life. always learn and make yourself a better person, whether you learn from a book or lifes lessons.
2006-07-31 08:35:10 · answer #8 · answered by perplexter 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As far as truth goes, it's a bald contradiction.
2006-07-31 08:43:40 · answer #9 · answered by -.- 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
what i see may not be what you see ( not using see in the visual but in the defining sense) to the answer below the metaphysical version would be "i do not know what i know is true "( it's a translation !)
2006-07-31 08:33:00 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋