“Ignorance is bliss” is a saying I hear too often for my liking. I don’t understand how anybody could agree with such a ridiculous statement. Of course there are always things we would rather not know, but don’t people ever stop and think, what are the benefits of knowing? Ignorance certainly isn’t bliss in my book. I’d rather know the truth and deal with it, than live a lie.
This is a never-ending argument I’ve had with many friends, and I just can’t find it in myself to believe that ignorance is really bliss. This might be because I am the type of person that wants to know everything. I think that there are better outcomes when you know things rather than being ignorant about it. An example people bring up all the time are “If someone knew when you were going to die, wouldn’t you rather not know?” and my answer will always be no. If ever faced with a situation where somebody knew when I was going to die, I would rather know. Why? Because then I could spend all of my time doing all of the things I know I would like to do before my passing. A friend of mine said he would rather live his life not knowing, but then you don’t get to live your life accomplishing every single thing you would want to before you die. There is also the whole “I wouldn’t want to know if my significant other cheated on me”, but I think that’s an absurd argument. It is better to know the truth and face it, than to pretend it never happened. If someone cheats on you and you don’t know and you continue dating him or her, you are being lied to and betrayed. I understand why some people would rather not know certain things, but I am not one of those people.
I think those who believe ignorance is bliss are scared to face the truth of a situation. Although it may hurt or it may be scary, I believe it is easier to control a situation if you know it. Me being a realist may also play into why I don’t believe ignorance is bliss. I see a situation as it is and am prepared to deal with it the way it needs to be dealt with. Usually I get mistaken for a pessimist, but not in the slightest. I would just prefer not to be given a false sense of hope of security and deal with crushed dreams or expectations because that’s life.
I agree with you. I always like to know what is really going on in my life. i also understand however why some people dont want to know the truth, maybe they have been betrayed before, and don't want to believe it will happen to them again. There are many situations where the truth hurts, but I agree, ignorance is not bliss.
ReplyDeleteSo far in these past blogs everything you've written is extremely deep. However, i don't exactly agree with your oppinion about life. I would much rather live life without knowing when i will die. This is because i believe in living life to the fullest. Even if i knew when my death would be it wouldnt matter because i'm already doing everything i would ever want to. Despite everything i've said; your writing is very strong. keep it up.
ReplyDeleteTypically, the term "ignorance is bliss" refers to those who are completely unaware of a situation (the "ignorance" portion of the idiom). As such, they have no idea that they should know about it, thus leading them to not worry about it (the "bliss" portion of the idiom). I understand your standpoint on the subject, but one must keep in mind that one does not choose to be ignorant typically, but rather are forced to be unknowing of the matters at hand.
ReplyDeleteThis post presents a bit of a paradox: if we are unaware of what we do not know, how can one be certain that it is better to know or not to know? Sometimes it might be better to be ignorant of awful things, and our minds are actually equipped with defense mechanisms which make us block out memories that are especially painful. This is one of the main ideas that modern psychotherapy is based on. Freud championed the idea that we are not always conscious of everything in our mind, that there are painful memories from childhood that are difficult to access. Often, it takes a realization by the patient of some of these hidden memories to heal them from their psychological ailment, so in this case, it would be better to be aware of the problem than to be ignorant of it.
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