What is the antithesis of the pursuit of knowledge?
This summer, I’ve finally had time to read--not just school books, but books that I want to read. Over the last week or two I’ve finished Uncle Tom’s Cabin and The Scarlet Letter, and now I’m working on Moby Dick.
As much as I am enjoying them, sometimes, I find myself excited that the book I’m reading is coming to a close so that I can pick the next book. While I’m picking books, I’m not necessarily looking for the most intellectually stimulating book; instead, I’m looking for the book that seems to be one that well-read people read.
This summer I’m taking an SAT prep course. I already took prep courses last summer and last school year. I learn in these courses to some degree, but mostly they just help me bring up my test scores.
Which leads me to wonder…does the pursuit of knowledge have two opposites? The pursuit of ignorance is its obvious antithesis, but maybe the pursuit of knowledge has a second, more insidious converse: the pursuit of the appearance of knowledge.
In trying to appear smart, I fail to ask questions when I don’t understand, because it might look stupid, and I rush from one thought and book to next trying to compile an intellectual resume of sorts without always trying to understand what I’m reading and thinking. In trying to appear like I’m pursuing knowledge, sometimes, I don’t actually pursue knowledge.
So. My goals: (1) While I’m reading a book or thinking a thought, really read and think-- rather than just pushing through to finish my book or thought, chewing on it. Questioning it. Discussing it. (2) In SAT prep, find real, applicable ways to use the knowledge more the trying to seem smart for the purpose of college admissions.
6 comments:
"Recommended reading lists" don't help any until you realize what philosophies or content they're recommended for, the same way reading "for the sake of reading" is an oxymoron. (what's to say that reading Plato's Republic is better for "the sake of reading" than any JANE AND SPOT RUN book?)
Thanks, I feel enlightened already :)
True. True. True. Sometimes, I get discouraged because I read so slowly, and it takes me forever to get through a book. But I can say for sure that I do actually learn from the books I finish reading. I guess that's better than reading a lot quickly and not learning much. (though I wish I was one of those people who could do both. :-) )
Why are you just reading the "classics" when there are so many better books out there? (is thinking specifically of the boringness of Moby Dick).
@Alex Because I really genuinely do like a lot of classics for the right reasons. I just lose sight of the right reasons every now and again. P.S. Moby Dick is actually really cool, it just makes me immensely sad that I know I'm probably missing a lot of the cool, deep stuff.
Sorry! Wrong Alex... @alexmacdonald
I wasn't completely serious when I said that... I love many classics as well (especially Dickens, Stevenson, Austen, Homer, etc). It just sometimes many of the best books are swept under the rug.
PS I've never got anywhere in Moby Dick, so i wouldn't really know. I have to read it next year in college, so I guess I'll find out.
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