The Knowledge of Good and Evil and How Everyone is Wrong but Me (part deux?)
Everyone is Wrong but Me
I recently researched this quote: "The more I love humanity in general, the less I love man in particular." (From The Brothers Karamazov) I managed to find the page and chapter it came from, but also discovered that the quote has been embraced as something of a banner cry of intellectuals--not because it illustrates how fallible humans are--but because it mirrors a true philanthropic intellectual's thoughts and feelings.
This post somewhat ties into DrRocket's blog, Can you recognize another human being? (part 1) found here:
drrocketanski.wordpress.com/2010/08/10/can-you-recognize-another-human-being-part-1/#comments
Perhaps I'm imposing the idea that only I see the world clearly, and only I have a true understanding of things, but it's becoming more and more apparent that truly intelligent people view the world 100% the opposite of how I view it. (Wrong, in other words. :))
To love humanity but not give a flying crap about your neighbor is to see people as abstract, far away objects. Doing this means you have to place people in groups, organize them, by color, creed, country of origin, and hairstyle, because to do otherwise is too messy and complicated for any human.
Again, this is leeching off DrRocket's blog about how liberals and conservatives view humanity:
drrocketanski.wordpress.com/page/2/
This means of organizing people often leads to a failure to see people as individuals. It was popular in the early 90's to consider stereotyping a negative thing. There were PSA adds about it even, which were just as preachy and annoying as most PSA adds tend to be.
But, now, stereotyping has come back into style, apparently, because viewing humanity from a distance, loving humanity as a whole requires this sort of organizing--like stacking a 1,000 Legos by color. It's a precious (or lazy; safe; arrogant) ability to see the big picture, while ignoring the complicated intricacies of every human, their complicated natures, the environment that affects their natures, the culture that nurtures or condemns their nature, the religion that can change human nature, and finally The Human Will which has an effect on nature no one can guess or predict.
But to admit that people are complicated is to admit to not having all the knowledge that's required to really understand humans. And that just makes people feel stupid. Intellectuals like to feel smart.
Humans are complicated. To love humanity as a whole is to hate the individual. Anyone who assumes this as a deeply held philosophy and lives by the idea tends to come off as "loving" at face value, but who do they love as much as they love themselves and their own kindness? Loving humanity, after all, requires very little work, usually just a thought or a feeling. (It's why we keep people "in our thoughts" when trying to express sympathy while staying in our comfort zones.) Loving an individual is much, much more difficult and messy. It's unsafe and often challenges our deeply held beliefs.
I never knew the Bible could be so loaded. The Ten Commandments say "Love thy neighbor as thyself" as opposed to "Love everyone as thyself" for a reason. That darn Bible can be kinda neat sometimes.
The Knowledge of Good and Evil
Why is it that, when we understand something, we grow to hate it? Knowledge, education, and intelligence is viewed as a positive thing, often by default. When in reality, it's neutral. Think of money. Love of money is the root of all evil, but money itself is just a means of getting stuff. If you like getting stuff--and who doesn't?--but you don't consider the ability to get as much stuff as you want the end all, be all of life, then money will not be a stumbling block.
This can be applied to knowledge as well. Knowledge is nice. It can be used for good, just like money can be used for good. But to be in love with knowledge, to tag it as a virtue on its own merits, is where the problem starts.
1C. 1 Corinthians 13:13
"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love."
There is a reason knowledge isn't listed as a virtue, because it's not.
I recently researched this quote: "The more I love humanity in general, the less I love man in particular." (From The Brothers Karamazov) I managed to find the page and chapter it came from, but also discovered that the quote has been embraced as something of a banner cry of intellectuals--not because it illustrates how fallible humans are--but because it mirrors a true philanthropic intellectual's thoughts and feelings.
This post somewhat ties into DrRocket's blog, Can you recognize another human being? (part 1) found here:
drrocketanski.wordpress.com/2010/08/10/can-you-recognize-another-human-being-part-1/#comments
Perhaps I'm imposing the idea that only I see the world clearly, and only I have a true understanding of things, but it's becoming more and more apparent that truly intelligent people view the world 100% the opposite of how I view it. (Wrong, in other words. :))
To love humanity but not give a flying crap about your neighbor is to see people as abstract, far away objects. Doing this means you have to place people in groups, organize them, by color, creed, country of origin, and hairstyle, because to do otherwise is too messy and complicated for any human.
Again, this is leeching off DrRocket's blog about how liberals and conservatives view humanity:
drrocketanski.wordpress.com/page/2/
This means of organizing people often leads to a failure to see people as individuals. It was popular in the early 90's to consider stereotyping a negative thing. There were PSA adds about it even, which were just as preachy and annoying as most PSA adds tend to be.
But, now, stereotyping has come back into style, apparently, because viewing humanity from a distance, loving humanity as a whole requires this sort of organizing--like stacking a 1,000 Legos by color. It's a precious (or lazy; safe; arrogant) ability to see the big picture, while ignoring the complicated intricacies of every human, their complicated natures, the environment that affects their natures, the culture that nurtures or condemns their nature, the religion that can change human nature, and finally The Human Will which has an effect on nature no one can guess or predict.
But to admit that people are complicated is to admit to not having all the knowledge that's required to really understand humans. And that just makes people feel stupid. Intellectuals like to feel smart.
Humans are complicated. To love humanity as a whole is to hate the individual. Anyone who assumes this as a deeply held philosophy and lives by the idea tends to come off as "loving" at face value, but who do they love as much as they love themselves and their own kindness? Loving humanity, after all, requires very little work, usually just a thought or a feeling. (It's why we keep people "in our thoughts" when trying to express sympathy while staying in our comfort zones.) Loving an individual is much, much more difficult and messy. It's unsafe and often challenges our deeply held beliefs.
I never knew the Bible could be so loaded. The Ten Commandments say "Love thy neighbor as thyself" as opposed to "Love everyone as thyself" for a reason. That darn Bible can be kinda neat sometimes.
The Knowledge of Good and Evil
Why is it that, when we understand something, we grow to hate it? Knowledge, education, and intelligence is viewed as a positive thing, often by default. When in reality, it's neutral. Think of money. Love of money is the root of all evil, but money itself is just a means of getting stuff. If you like getting stuff--and who doesn't?--but you don't consider the ability to get as much stuff as you want the end all, be all of life, then money will not be a stumbling block.
This can be applied to knowledge as well. Knowledge is nice. It can be used for good, just like money can be used for good. But to be in love with knowledge, to tag it as a virtue on its own merits, is where the problem starts.
1C. 1 Corinthians 13:13
"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love."
There is a reason knowledge isn't listed as a virtue, because it's not.