Thursday, April 5, 2012

Quest for Knowledge: Our Death Sentence?


Do we know too much? Is knowing many things for our greater good? Or is knowing too much in the verge of causing our own inevitable downfall? Knowing too much could become anyone's cause of destruction.
            For centuries the concept of knowing more than one should has been considered taboo. Biblical scripture tells of the first man and woman being forbidden to eat the forbidden fruit of knowledge. The snake argued to eve that if she and her partner were to eat the fruit they would know as much as God. After eating the fruit due to temptation, Adam and Eve are made aware of their nakedness and immediately attempt to clothe themselves, and because of their greed, God punished Adam and Eve by casting them out of the Garden of Eden and cursing them with pain and hard labor.
            If the greed to know as much as god cause the original sin, then why would anyone in the present want to achieve the burden of knowing all the secrets of the universe? If a person were to find out every little secret, they would know not only the beginning and the end, but also his or her beginning and their end. Imagine knowing how you would die; you would evade any event remotely similar to the incident that kills you (unless it is from disease or old age). If a man were to find out they would die by a piano dropping on his head, that man would avoid pianos at all cost, no matter how miniscule the risk is. The person would live his life in constant fear thinking pianos are out to get him. I know if I found out my future cause of death, such as being burned alive, I would never go near another open flame as long as I lived.
            If a person would know everything, he or she would be haunted by the past, present and future. If others were to find out an all-knowing person existed, they would be constantly pestering the all-knowing person to find out information no matter how big or how small. Whether it be where lost keys have ended up or if love would find a way, all the questions would leave the all-knowing without a moment of peace and quiet.
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            As of right now do we as a people already know too much? We know how to annihilate an entire civilization with the use of nuclear weapons. Is knowing how to vaporize each other all that necessary? Knowing how to separate atoms to blow anything up could end up blowing you up. Like the saying goes, you die as you lived. Those who can go to war because they know they have the means to win, will- like history has shown us, ultimately lose because they put all their efforts into power and too much power always cause the tower of infrastructure to topple over and fall.
            I believe we know too much. We know too much about what can be our downfall. We don't know too much about what can save us from disease or what can help us live without poverty, but right now, it seems to me that our priorities are in search of military strength and who can get the better gun. Maybe one day we'll forget about the search for greater weapons and we'll replace that knowledge about medicine and living as one society. After that's achieved, then maybe no one will say we know too much. One day we might be able to say, "We know enough."

1 comment:

  1. I agree and do believe knowing to much can become the cause of anyone’s destruction. I do not find a reason for living if I know what is going to happen from beginning to end. Growing up is the process of learning things every step of the way. It comes as a surprise; if it did not then it would be boring. People would be living with caution if they knew their death. I do not think people would be social or productive with the fear of their pending doom. I do not think there would be any kind of a community. It is fascinating and interesting to learn something new. When I learn or accomplish something new I feel like I can do so many things. Over the years I have grown and learned many things like math and communication skills. If I already knew how to do that then I would a dull person. Where is the fun and enjoyment of already knowing something without experiencing? People could not experience anything new and not enjoy making memories. People would have memories but not look back to have a laugh. A person is wise because they learned and experienced over time new information. I am happy not having all knowledge that there is. I have no worries and there is things and information that I am better off not knowing. I do not mind not knowing. It is not hurting me. I know over time I will learn new things and be successful from experiencing, there is no rush.

    Team 1, Tue-Thu 12:30
    Ruth Espinoza

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