http://www.naivety.org/naivety-is-a-goo ... mber-that/
I would like to start a discussion on this topic. And if you are familiar with philosophers who have thought about this topic - please share it with me!
All the best
Mads
Is naivety a good thing?
Is naivety a good thing?
I would like to hear what you think? As i see it, the two biggest enemies to naivety is university and getting older. Right now I’m in the process of both. Im a first year student in philosophy and wrote an open letter to an older me, since i am afraid i might chance my mind later in life
http://www.naivety.org/naivety-is-a-goo ... mber-that/
I would like to start a discussion on this topic. And if you are familiar with philosophers who have thought about this topic - please share it with me!
All the best
Mads
http://www.naivety.org/naivety-is-a-goo ... mber-that/
I would like to start a discussion on this topic. And if you are familiar with philosophers who have thought about this topic - please share it with me!
All the best
Mads
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The Voice of Time
- Posts: 2212
- Joined: Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:18 pm
- Location: Norway
Re: Is naivety a good thing?
Naïvety is to act as if there is an absence of (sufficient) knowledge. Its use as an insult equivalent to "stupid" (a word in which it relates to) has however, in my experience, clouded it a lot, to the point it is sometimes thought of simply as a lack of sufficient knowledge.
Naïve might be used to say somebody lack a merit that would've made them think otherwise about a matter, and while it might be true it doesn't necessarily mean they lack anything useful that the person who says it has, as it's a point of view whether ones own perspective is good or bad. Naïvety in and of itself doesn't mean either good or bad, but depends upon the situation.
A naïve person might have expectations of goodness for instance, a form of optimism, where others despair or show pessimism. This can be of strong strategic value, providing willpower to push, providing goal orientation and providing resolution where others might wither before they've lost (imagine somebody about to loose something spending their remaining time drinking alcohol instead of resisting).
A naïve person might be what keeps "evil at bay" (to quote an oft heard saying), by assuming a different "game" (way of acting and being for multiple parties) than the pessimistic or ill-willed people play. Pessimism self-disintegrates, ill-will push for others disintegration. By assuming people nice, you might find them having trouble being bad, by assuming people good, you might find them wanting to be good, by assuming people strong, you might find them want to be strong. If, however, you assume people bad, in a fashion you'll see with people like Bobevenson, you'll often end up creating a continued situation of them playing the role that makes them bad.
A person relying solely on experience however might find themselves playing the same game over and over again, and while better at it, might not get that the game itself might work against them by granting them unfair positions to start with.
Naïvety is also a way for generations to get rid of the bad of the past, while at the same time also being able to run into the same bad stuff. It's really a matter of situation. Remember the past and you might feel ill at will against something somebody did long ago. Forget the past and you might make the same mistakes as your parents. The strategically naïve however doesn't stay ignorant, but chooses his emphasizings more carefully, and stay optimistic when it will benefit him/her. In such a way they might play down things they know, in the hope that they might change the game entirely.
Naïve might be used to say somebody lack a merit that would've made them think otherwise about a matter, and while it might be true it doesn't necessarily mean they lack anything useful that the person who says it has, as it's a point of view whether ones own perspective is good or bad. Naïvety in and of itself doesn't mean either good or bad, but depends upon the situation.
A naïve person might have expectations of goodness for instance, a form of optimism, where others despair or show pessimism. This can be of strong strategic value, providing willpower to push, providing goal orientation and providing resolution where others might wither before they've lost (imagine somebody about to loose something spending their remaining time drinking alcohol instead of resisting).
A naïve person might be what keeps "evil at bay" (to quote an oft heard saying), by assuming a different "game" (way of acting and being for multiple parties) than the pessimistic or ill-willed people play. Pessimism self-disintegrates, ill-will push for others disintegration. By assuming people nice, you might find them having trouble being bad, by assuming people good, you might find them wanting to be good, by assuming people strong, you might find them want to be strong. If, however, you assume people bad, in a fashion you'll see with people like Bobevenson, you'll often end up creating a continued situation of them playing the role that makes them bad.
A person relying solely on experience however might find themselves playing the same game over and over again, and while better at it, might not get that the game itself might work against them by granting them unfair positions to start with.
Naïvety is also a way for generations to get rid of the bad of the past, while at the same time also being able to run into the same bad stuff. It's really a matter of situation. Remember the past and you might feel ill at will against something somebody did long ago. Forget the past and you might make the same mistakes as your parents. The strategically naïve however doesn't stay ignorant, but chooses his emphasizings more carefully, and stay optimistic when it will benefit him/her. In such a way they might play down things they know, in the hope that they might change the game entirely.
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marjoramblues
- Posts: 632
- Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2012 9:37 am
Re: Is naivety a good thing?
Great idea to keep track of your thoughts in a journal; 'Meditations' as you go.Hallas wrote:I would like to hear what you think? As i see it, the two biggest enemies to naivety is university and getting older. Right now I’m in the process of both. Im a first year student in philosophy and wrote an open letter to an older me, since i am afraid i might chance my mind later in life
http://www.naivety.org/naivety-is-a-goo ... mber-that/
... if you are familiar with philosophers who have thought about this topic - please share it with me!
A kwik-wiki >
: is the state of being naive—having or showing a lack of experience, understanding or sophistication, often in a context where one neglects pragmatism in favor of moral idealism.
References Schiller:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schiller
Quote: ‘Stay true to the dreams of thy youth’
If it is related to 'gullibility' : a tendency to believe too quickly > being easily deceived, then probably not very helpful.
Re: Is naivety a good thing?
In an intelligent person who studies and pays attention to the world, grows and adapts, naivetee is a temporary state. It is a state of immature youth, like virginity. But, while you can decide to remain a virgin by resisting the temptations of adulthood, you can't deliberately stay naive.
You can hold on to the ideals of your youth, but must give up its illusions. You must find better-informed and more effective means of serving your ideals.
You can hold on to the ideals of your youth, but must give up its illusions. You must find better-informed and more effective means of serving your ideals.
Re: Is naivety a good thing?
Since the definition of naivety and ignroance are almost interchangeable (i know there is a minor difference), I will use the word ignorance for it's familiarity in philosophical discussions.
Knowing everything is hard; in fact, its so hard nobody is able to do it. For, in knowing everything, a billion more worries comes to mind. Ignorance is truly blissful because the absence of knowledge entails the absence of worry. Take, for example, dieting and healthy eating. Do you know what you're eating? If I were to tell you the composition of your food and it's harmful influence over bodily behaviors you'd never eat anything again! That is why I never click the videos reporting what McDonalds do to their food - I like McDonalds and in my ignorance to what harmful substances lies in my joy I am able to continue eating what I love (it's just an example - I don't really love McDonalds
). Do you know how harmful being constantly dehydrated is (trust me, if you're not drinking at least 1L of water everyday you are dehydrated)? If you knew exactly what happened to you you'd be gulping down water every single day. Knowing everything only entails lots of worries.
Too much ignorance is bad for you as well. I think it's rather obvious why so I wont stress on the details. I love knowledge - I read loads of books in order to expand my knowledge. I endeavor in Academic Contests with a group of my friends so that we could test our knowledge and grow smarter. Too much knowledge, though, will only kill you.
That is a quote from Mr. Kurt Vonnegut in the book Cat's Cralde (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat's_Cradle). I won't really stress on trying to explaining that quote in particular, if you understand that quote reading my argument is going to be a lot easier.Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and finds himself no wiser than before... He is full of murderous resentment of people who are ignorant without having come by their ignorance the hard way.
Knowing everything is hard; in fact, its so hard nobody is able to do it. For, in knowing everything, a billion more worries comes to mind. Ignorance is truly blissful because the absence of knowledge entails the absence of worry. Take, for example, dieting and healthy eating. Do you know what you're eating? If I were to tell you the composition of your food and it's harmful influence over bodily behaviors you'd never eat anything again! That is why I never click the videos reporting what McDonalds do to their food - I like McDonalds and in my ignorance to what harmful substances lies in my joy I am able to continue eating what I love (it's just an example - I don't really love McDonalds
). Do you know how harmful being constantly dehydrated is (trust me, if you're not drinking at least 1L of water everyday you are dehydrated)? If you knew exactly what happened to you you'd be gulping down water every single day. Knowing everything only entails lots of worries.Too much ignorance is bad for you as well. I think it's rather obvious why so I wont stress on the details. I love knowledge - I read loads of books in order to expand my knowledge. I endeavor in Academic Contests with a group of my friends so that we could test our knowledge and grow smarter. Too much knowledge, though, will only kill you.