Between Plato’s dialogues and the Greek tragedies composed by Sophocles, there remains a rift between the idea that knowledge is the ultimate achievement versus the idea that it is ultimately the downfall of one’s mental and emotional well-being. While Plato argues that knowledge of absoluteness, true beauty, and otherwise complete enlightenment can only be achieved in fractions by means of cognitive awareness or fully after death, Sophocles presents the notion that we are better off blind to the truths of the world and of ourselves that are naturally too difficult to stomach. This presents a divide between the attainability of wisdom; whether it is tangible within life or death, whether our belief in it is impowering enough to allow us to
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While no answer is given between whether it would be more beneficial to seek wisdom or to enjoy obliviousness, knowledge is presented as concrete and attainable in life. For Oedipus, it is especially tangible, as there is a marked distinction before and after that knowledge is gained. Not only is knowledge achieved, but it is bestowed upon him in the form of a revelation as he shouts “O god – all come true, all burst to light! O light – now let me look my last on you! I stand revealed at last – cursed in my birth, cursed in marriage, cursed in the lives I cut down with these hands!” (Oedipus the King, 232 – 1306 – 1310) The process of achieving it, however, is one of great endurance. This implies that although as humans we have the ability to become wise of our own accord, it takes a certain level of dedication, persistence, and defiance to achieve it. Oedipus presses Jocasta to describe to him what Laius looked like and who he traveled with, sends for the shepherd corroborate her story, and threatens the shepherd when he is reluctant to reveal the unfortunate truth, saying “You’re a dead man if I have to ask again.” (230 – 1281) Sophocles presents wisdom as something that is often obscured and must be investigated to be achieved, because people can choose to believe in things that are not true, or to turn a blind eye to things that are. Knowledge is always within reach, but perhaps not everyone is equipped with the character to do
While no answer is given between whether it would be more beneficial to seek wisdom or to enjoy obliviousness, knowledge is presented as concrete and attainable in life. For Oedipus, it is especially tangible, as there is a marked distinction before and after that knowledge is gained. Not only is knowledge achieved, but it is bestowed upon him in the form of a revelation as he shouts “O god – all come true, all burst to light! O light – now let me look my last on you! I stand revealed at last – cursed in my birth, cursed in marriage, cursed in the lives I cut down with these hands!” (Oedipus the King, 232 – 1306 – 1310) The process of achieving it, however, is one of great endurance. This implies that although as humans we have the ability to become wise of our own accord, it takes a certain level of dedication, persistence, and defiance to achieve it. Oedipus presses Jocasta to describe to him what Laius looked like and who he traveled with, sends for the shepherd corroborate her story, and threatens the shepherd when he is reluctant to reveal the unfortunate truth, saying “You’re a dead man if I have to ask again.” (230 – 1281) Sophocles presents wisdom as something that is often obscured and must be investigated to be achieved, because people can choose to believe in things that are not true, or to turn a blind eye to things that are. Knowledge is always within reach, but perhaps not everyone is equipped with the character to do