And how is not this the most reprehensible ignorance, to think that one knows what one does not know? But I, O Athenians! in this, perhaps, differ from most men; and if I should say that I am in any thing wiser than another, it would be in this, that not having a competent knowledge of the things in Hades, I also think that I have not such knowledge.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The author argues that thinking one knows what one does not know is reprehensible ignorance. He claims he is wiser because he admits he lacks knowledge of the afterlife.
- In plain terms
- He criticizes false knowledge and claims wisdom through admitting ignorance.
- What can you take from it?
- Avoid assuming you know what you do not know.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What do you assume you know?
- How do you verify knowledge?
Another view
Practical knowledge often requires making claims without absolute certainty.
More from Socrates
When I left him, I reasoned thus with myself: I am wiser than this man, for neither of us appears to know anything great and good; but he fancies he knows some…
Permalink to quote #6 The unexamined life is not worth living for a human being. (ho de anexetastos bios ou biotos anthropoi)
Permalink to quote #8 Has a philosopher like you failed to discover that our country is more to be valued and higher and holier far than mother or father or any ancestor, and more t…
Permalink to quote #5
Related quotes
Que sais-je?
Michel de MontaigneMichel de Montaigne quote #1 An aphorism can never be the whole truth; it is either a half-truth or a truth-and-a-half.
Karl KrausKarl Kraus quote #4 It is better to don't understand something true, than to understand something false.
Niels BohrNiels Bohr quote #19