Are You Truly Educated?
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
— Aristotle
This is, I think, a very important point which we tend to forget in our debates both here on Blogit and elsewhere in society. Only the truly educated person can confront an alien thought and consider its merits without either blindly accepting it or condemning it. Taking the time to consider a thought does not change the intrinsic merit of the idea; however, consideration of an idea may often lead to acceptance, at least in part. Perhaps this is why we resist consideration of unfamiliar ideas: if we ponder an idea, we may find that we must change our own notions, perhaps throwing out half a dozen erroneous ideas which we have held dear because the new idea shows the old to be false. It is a daunting and frightening thing to evaluate and discard pet ideas. Only the truly educated may be capable of doing so.
3 Comments
very interesting…..
Sounds like you are saying that those with a higher intelligence are more likely to be open to new ways of looking at things and to the possibility of changing their mind. I believe that. Thanks!
People often speak of facts and figures when they think of gaining an education but the real value is in developing the skills to acquire and analyze information. What facts you learn matter less than that except in some fields where a technical knowlidege is essential.
So true. So often, we forget that education is only analytical data and information. The ability to be objective and considerate is also included in the list of attributes.