What Is Wisdom Essay

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What is wisdom?
Introduction: Wisdom is generally thought of as a certain set of knowledge which has both a practical and a theoretical aspect. This knowledge inevitably results in the person who has it living a good life. This is because a wise person is both someone who knows the correct things, knows how to rationally implement them and succeeds at doing so and thereby living a good life.
Thesis: I argue that wisdom is a mixture of practical knowledge and abstract knowledge where a person is capable of and succeeds at applying these ideas in a rational way that results in a good life.
Argument: In order to be truly wise it seems clear that a person must know the universe and their place in it. As such extensive knowledge is necessary. However, they must also have extensive knowledge of their own life and therefore must be expert in the proper way of applying this knowledge and therefore know how best to live well. Such a person 's knowledge will also make it clear to them the inherent value of living well, and would therefore have to desire it as well as know how to attain it (Hursthouse 12). Someone who is not living well and therefore virtuously surely cannot then be wise.
As long as we do not assume that wisdom must be attainable by all people, there is not a problem. However, it should further be noted that the condition is that a wise person must have extensive theoretical knowledge. This says nothing about false beliefs. An ancient person, if truly wise, will have investigated the world to the extent that it must surely be true that they have a large amount of true beliefs. The fact that they also have along side those true beliefs some false ones due to the primitive time they live does not negate the extensive theoretical knowledge they still

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