Living Toward Virtue by Paul Woodruff

Author:Paul Woodruff
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2022-06-15T00:00:00+00:00

5.1. Ignorance and Aporia

Ignorance takes various forms: there is (a) ignorance we must always try to overcome, (b) ignorance we must sometimes try to overcome, and (c), ignorance we must learn to live with, such as our aporia concerning moral matters.

(a) We must always try to overcome the sort of ignorance we show when we are so confident in our judgments that we refuse to listen to other points of view. We must also try to overcome our ignorance about our actions and motivations. O. Henry would not have taken cash from the bank drawer if he had understood his action correctly as a case of stealing.

(b) There are forms of ignorance that we must try to overcome in some cases but not others, according to circumstance. False confidence and false modesty, when based in ignorance, fall into this category. Overestimating your ability to do something may lead to disaster, but it may also lead to success. Underestimating your ability may have good social consequences, and may also help you to avoid the problems that come with overweening pride, or hubris. But it may also hold you back from some great and heroic feat.

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