Ignorance is bliss...

I'm sure most of you here know the age-old idiom, "Ignorance is bliss."

This phrase actually comes from the last two lines of a very old poem "On a Distant Prospect of Eton College" by English poet Thomas Gray:

"Where ignorance is bliss,
'Tis folly to be wise."

This is the origin of the now proverbial phrase “ignorance is bliss.” In the poem, it referred to young people who are happily oblivious to the difficulties they will face as adults — and to the ultimate, inescapable fate of death. However, quite ironically, in the age of information this seems to be spouted out far too much and simply thrown at any problem or circumstance that seems inconvenient or trying, making it a veritable slogan of the ill-informed. Very similar to another popular saying that tends to be overused and under-thought "What you don't know can't hurt you." But, in reality, how true is this?

Firstly, I can think of myriad things that would prove both of these statements embarrassingly wrong. To name just a few: STDs, cancer, mental illness, diabetes, adultery, extortion or manipulation, etc... the list really goes on. Secondly, several other "counter-phrases" also come to mind when I hear people say this and they're usually either none-too-pleased or humorously stumped when I verbalize these rebuttals. For instance British actor Stephen Fry's flip on the statement:

"If ignorance is bliss, why aren't there more happy people in the world?"

I quite like that one. Or another power phrase that seems to be the true converse and direct counter to the original:

"Knowledge is power."

What do you all think of this? Is ignorance truly bliss? Is this simply a catch-all cliche that people enjoy using to justify lack of knowledge or understanding? Or, perhaps it comes down to something a bit simpler: If ignorance is bliss and knowledge is power, would you rather be happy or competent?

(P.S. If anyone is interested the contents of the original poem can be found here.)

 

Interesting post. It always comes down to opinion though. The statements are true in many ways, but can be argued against and contradicted. Interesting though.

 

Bliss, in this context, does not mean paradisaical. In comparison to knowing many woes of the world, the quote is meant to essentially say that life is simplistic and far easier to enjoy than knowing what happens behind closed doors.

As for the second one, it is entirely true. The vast majority of people who have a lot of wealth, sit on boards in billion dollar companies, etc., are very educated. Alternatively, if you know many things, you can quickly amass to power. If you know how to manipulate people, if you know how to talk smoothly, if you know how to falsely assure a mass of people (shoutout to politicians) you can quickly get power.

 

Off topic here, but to add on to this post, knowledge doesn't necessarily have to mean conventional knowledge, i.e. educated. The most important piece of knowledge in terms of power would be interpersonal skills - how to talk to people, read their emotions, and manipulate them accordingly.

 

I understand a lot of things are opinion, and this may fall into that category, but I certainly don't think "it always comes down to opinion." Not everything is subjective.

Of course, and I think, actually, that is the exact context in which a majority of the people understand and use the phrase. However I think it is necessary to ask the question: Is being comfortable and happy really worth not being fully aware, armed with knowledge, and attempting to make a much-need change in the world? If everyone assumed the former there would be no radical movements or socio-political changes in society, which would leave all of us in a very bad spot. Unfortunately, it seems that this is the way our current state of affairs has been leaning -- at least from my perspective. I personally know a lot of people who go through life blissfully unaware of the true nature of things in the world today because they would rather spend their entire waking lives preoccupying themselves with television and work and partying and such. It makes me really sad.

 

These days people use that quote for particular and specific situations. I totally agree with what you're saying and I never quite understood the phrase when people say it generally or literally.

 

The statement could not be literal. However, it has a truth in it. This is that the world is so deeply corrupted and full of suffering that one cannot improve it very much. Thus, to be ignorant is better than to fret over all the problems. Alternatively, the wise man has knowledge of the happenings of the world and must endure his inability to change them.

 

Ignorance is bliss- Its quite interesting. I would like to bring up one idea and many children are 'ignorant' as they dont have a full understanding of the world however they seem generally to be happier as they are not burdened with all the problems of the world.
OR are they just happy due to a lack of responsibility?