Does the presence or possession of great knowledge&understanding automatically imply the absence of ignorance?

Question

TWH 08092006

Level 3

Knowledge isn't Wisdom.

Imagine were would be if teachers believed and acted as this quote suggests: "He who knows does not speak; he who speaks does not know"
Lao Tze, the Dao De Jing

The quote does not address the Q asked in any way I can see.
TWH 08132006

My Q is concerned about implying the absence of ignorance from the presence or possession of grat knowledge and understanding. The concern for *wisdom* or *stupidity* or any relation between them, is not a part of my Q, though I will ask a Q about that later because it was brought up by some of you.
TWH 08162006

I have reviewed all the 12 answers and I have boiled my choice for best answer down to crossstitch and Ramola who gave similar answers. And the winner is:

Answer 1

no, u may be knowledgeable in many things but at the same time u may be ignorant of few things. for example i am highly educated. have two masters degrees. . but i cannot fix a leaking tap. i have to call a plumber who is an illiterate. he is more knowledgeable in that field than i am. don't u think i am ignorant in spite of being educated & having knowledge.

Answer 2

Knowledge and understanding aren't synonyms. Great knowledge doesn't mean absence of ignorance. You can memorize a vast quantity of information and still be an utter nobhead. If someone has great understanding, however, that would imply that they aren't ignorant. I think people mix up intelligence, learning and understanding. Understanding, in your question seems to imply wisdom which has a moral dimension.

I've met very learned people who are ignorant as hell, and people with little education who are wise. Interesting that in Portuguese educato means polite or gracious. And in German bildung means meaning formation can be used in the sense of in a schools or what we mean by character.

Education comes from the lation meaning to lead out: something is drawn from the person rather than, in the case of "knowledge transfer" - ah how beautiful these new terms, put in.

Answer 3

_Great_ knowledge & understanding do not imply the absence of ignorance, but they strongly imply the absence of _willful_ ignorance.

Willful ignorance is when a person chooses to believe in a belief even when logic & evidence overwhelmingly contradict it. People who believe in creationism, for instance, are usually guilty of willful ignorance because often they have seen the evidence for evolution, but simply dismiss or ignore it, while grasping onto straw-man arguments that have been shown time and time again to be false. The willfully ignorant make a deliberate choice not to educate themselves, and instead hold on to gross stereotypes, horribly out-of-date or out-of-context info, and outright lies promoted by their fellow willfully ignorant.

Knowledge is WHAT you know, but understanding is HOW & WHY you know. I think it is understanding that really can safeguard a mind against ignorance. Understanding involves making use of the mental tools & thought processes that can separate knowledge from belief, what is actually true from what one would merely like to be true. Understanding involves using critical thinking skills to look at the evidence & arrive at an answer, rather than believing in an answer and then looking for evidence & rationalizations to support it.

As another answerer said, we're all ignorant of something or another. But knowing how to think in a scientific, methodical, critical manner can make the difference between remaining ignorant, or gaining knowledge.

Answer 4

Ignorance is the lack of knowledge of something, not necessarily stupidity. We may have great knowledge and understanding, but there is no way we could know everything, so we will all have areas in which we are ignorant. Stupidity is another issue altogether. I know people who have advance degrees that I wouldn't trust with sharp objects.

Answer 5

According to Socrates it is impossible to possess great knowledge and understanding without first accepting that one is truely ignorant.

No knowledge or understanding is infallible.

Example take the greatests minds that lived 300 years ago and meld them into one person. All of their knowledge and understanding would pale when interpreted within the context of our knowledge today. Many of the assumptions of truth they had 300 years ago would be discredited today.

In the end we are all ignorant because we are limited by our senses and the tools that we can build to expand our senses.

Answer 6

Knowledge isn't Wisdom.

"He who knows does not speak; he who speaks does not know"
Lao Tze, the Dao De Jing

Answer 7

Nobody has the monopoly of knowledge..
Even if he possess great knowledge and understanding he still believes[by virtue of being understanding] that he doesn't know everything.

Answer 8

There is a fine line between being academically smart and having common sense. Rarely do both qualities befall the same person.

Answer 9

Ingnorance is simply the lack of knowing, yet, I know of no other being, save God, that has the quality of understanding everything...so ignorance is ours, & filling those little voids & enjoying it, is what it's all about.

Answer 10

We are all ignorant of something.