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Ignorance in The World In Robert Proctor’s “Agnotology: A Missing Term to Describe the Cultural Production of Ignorance (and Its Study)” he uses three variants of ignorance to display his purpose in the article. The three are Ignorance as a native state, Ignorance as a lost realm, Ignorance as a strategic ploy and each of these combines so the author can show his readers there isn’t just one type of ignorance. In the native state proctor states, “We need ignorance to fuel our knowledge engines” (Proctor, 7). Mr. Proctor is saying that the more knowledge and information a person possesses then they are less ignorant and will realize ignorance quicker than others. The form of ignorance known as a “lost realm” is not focusing or as the author
The Crucible by Arthur Miller is set in Salem in a Puritan community. John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor, Reverend Hale, Reverend Paris, and Abigail are the main characters. The book is about witchcraft or what the town thinks is witchcraft. John Proctor is the tragic hero because he is loving, loyal, authoritative, but his tragic flaw is his temper.
John Proctor is a good man. He is a puritan, a husband, a citizen, and an all around valuable member of the community. All of this is represented by his name. The name of John Proctor could be considered his most prized possession. It is his most priceless asset. Proctor is very strong-willed and caring. He does not set out with any intentions of hurting anyone. He is a farmer and village commoner who is faced with incredible inner turmoil. He has committed adultery and had absolutely no intentions of joining in the witch trials. After his wife got involved and eventually was set free due to the fact that she was pregnant, he feels that he can't sit back and accept what is happening to the town. John Proctor is a good and noble man and because of this he believes that he can't be hanged and die a martyr when he has this sin blooming over him every waking moment.
Selfishness is exhibited many times by many different people. John Proctor is a great example of the selfishness in the play. He acts for himself in the beginning of the play, but becomes almost completely selfless by the end of the play. He has to face many different trials but they help him learn that he needs to be the man people in the town expect him to be. As he realizes this he begins to act in accordance with the needs of the town and not his own.
The primary dramatic focus in the play The Crucible is the moral struggle of its protagonist, John Proctor. Certain characteristics of John Proctor's character and also the environment of the Puritanical Salem alleviated this problem for him. The main issues running through out the play are a series of dilemmas that John Proctor faces. The first and foremost of these is his guilt over his adulterous affair with Abigail Williams, the second his hesitation to testify against Abigail to bring out the truth and the third, his final decision to make the ultimate sacrifice.
The Crucible is a very popular novel/play written by Arthur Miller. John Proctor is a common, angry, and stubborn farmer who works very hard to get by; until his wife Elizabeth is accused of witchcraft. Elizabeth Proctor or John's wife is an average, jealous, and insecure housewife in the town of Salem when she receives claims of witchcraft on her name. John and Elizabeth are common people who have to overcome a great trial.
Throughout the whole play, John Proctor placed himself as a “servant” of God only and maintained that position regardless of what happened. He represented the image of a person that corresponded for God in Earth, and at the same time he acted consciously and knew what was happening in Salem. In an attempt to disengage from God, his principles, conscience, and morality acted upon him and brought him back to God. Elizabeth and his friends also affected his conscience, as the only reason why he went to the court was to try to release them. John Proctor can be considered the savior of Salem, he can be considered Jesus in that story. His name was important as it was the main reason why he decided to die with dignity instead of live for a lie; but what is the symbolism behind his name? What is conscience and why does John Proctor struggle with his?
The phrase, “ignorance is bliss,” points toward the fact that sometimes not having knowledge about something is frightening, but it can sometimes be better than knowing and stressing about it. The definition of “Bliss” means supreme happiness; utter joy or contentment, and it is explored in, "Anthem," ignorance does not always ensure a person to bliss. In, "Anthem," the people of Equality’s society are often scared and depressed. They do not know why they aren’t allowed to love who they want to love, why they can’t do the jobs they want to do, and why they aren’t allowed to ask questions. Everyone in this society has been raised ignorant of their government’s form of corruption; their subjugation of individuals. These people fail to realize this, and their lives are miserable because of it.
In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, various characters, whether it is from physical trials or unseen personal struggles, experience some kind of major conflict. There are those who spend every day in fear, wondering whether or not they will be falsely accused of witchcraft. There are others who struggle with more internal trials, such as forgiving those who have hurt them. The protagonist, John Proctor, was a man of strong moral constitution, and held himself to a high standard for the sake of his good name and family. As a result of this, he struggled with a major internal conflict throughout the play.
In the novel, Kindred, written by Octavia E. Butler, many characters throughout the book displays ignorance versus knowledge which, like MLK has said, is dangerous. The main character, Dana, time travels from 1976 back to the early nineteenth century. When she time travels, she pops in and out of places at random times; most of the time, it happens when people are around. In this novel, many different characters show their ignorance by displaying their emotions as if they did not see anything happen at all. This act can be easily associated with society today. Hypothetically, if a person sees a ghost, they tell themselves that it would never happen again, and this, most of the time, is not the case. Therefore, it is a fact that ignorance and knowledge will always be a problem that society will have due to people’s refusal to accept what they see happen right in front of them.
The pursuit of knowledge can lead to a humans destruction and awareness. The pursuit of
In the essay “The Allegory of the Cave,” Plato addresses how humans generally do not pursue knowledge. Most humans are satisfied with what they already know and do not want to expand their knowledge. Plato uses simple examples to help the reader understand his logic on why humans do not expand their knowledge.
How can a man who cheated on his wife possibly be seen as a hero? Not only that, but it was also lechery - the girl that he cheated on his wife with was only seventeen years old. However, this thirty year old man is also somehow the hero of the story. His name is John Proctor, and he is the protagonist in The Crucible. Now, why would Arthur Miller, author of The Crucible, create such a problematic “hero?” If one looks at what he’s done, he doesn’t seem like a very admirable guy. However, that was Miller’s whole point. Miller used John Proctor to explain his allegory to the reader - he showed us that the victims of the Salem witch trials and the communists accused during McCarthyism were human beings - and by doing this, he reminded the reader that despite adversity, one should always remain true to themselves.
Though I do find myself judging others from time to time. Which I find to be more of an exercise (a positive) than anything else. I agree with both messages these philosophers are trying to deliver. Ignorance can be dangerous if we are not aware of its existence, however, by compartmentalizing our ignorance and adjusting the levels can we learn to live with it, still enjoying life. How not knowing too much or too little but just enough (balance), is the way to
Which statement/phrase from the above excerpt is a context clue to the meaning of the word “oblivious”?
To respond to this shortcoming of consciousness, some might attempt to find an absolute absolved from one-sidedness, from sheer relativity to the knowing subject. Others will not respond this way, however, instead spinning off into apathy, subjectivism, or nihilism (59). Those who do attempt to find an objective truth most often turn to science. Some have suggested that the intellect is an ...