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Błoga ignorancja
zy niewiedza może być wyborem? Czy unikanie prawdy bywa koniecznością? Mark Lilla, wybitny filozof i eseista, zaprasza czytelników w podróż po meandrach ludzkiej psychiki, pokazując, jak często świadomie odwracamy wzrok od rzeczywistości.
W swojej błyskotliwej książce Błoga ignorancja prowadzi czytelnika przez historię myśli i kultury, analizując, dlaczego wolimy wierzyć w iluzje, pielęgnować tabu i unikać niewygodnych faktów.
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W swojej błyskotliwej książce Błoga ignorancja prowadzi czytelnika przez historię myśli i kultury, analizując, dlaczego wolimy wierzyć w iluzje, pielęgnować tabu i unikać niewygodnych faktów.
Odpowiada na pytania:
256 pages, Paperback
First published December 3, 2024
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953 people want to read
About the author
Mark Lilla
23 books176 followersMark Lilla is an American political scientist, historian of ideas, journalist, and professor of humanities at Columbia University in New York City. A self-described liberal, he typically, though not always, presents views from that perspective.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
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February 14, 2025I thought this book was only okay — not bad, not great; a three-star book. He explores the tension in all of us between wanting to know and wanting to remain ignorant. He starts with Oedipus the King, which is probably the quintessential example, but he explores this theme through literary, philosophical, and religious texts ranging from Homer, to Virgil, to the Gospels and St. Paul, to Dickens and Dostoyevsky. I’ve omitted countless others and some people who I just didn’t know anything about. He definitely seems to have a problem with Christianity. Unfortunately, his knowledge of St. Paul and the Gospels is either very thin, or he simply cherry-picked passages that might fit neatly into his thesis. Perhaps it’s because I have been reading one of the world’s greatest Pauline scholars today that I was attuned to the numerous missteps he made. The book also feels a bit disorganized to me and at times seems to lurch from one subject to another. I wasn’t always sure how everything fit together or why numerous short passages followed upon one another. This may have been a limitation on my part, though. I haven’t read any reviews of this book that would either confirm or refute my perception in this regard. Again, not a bad book and one that I think could serve as the foundation of a college course. But not the best either.
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August 12, 2025Brak oceny jest spowodowany tym, że ja tej książki nie zrozumiałam. Męczyłam ją kilka miesięcy i teraz wiem, że mogłam po prostu zrobić dnf. Nie polecam, książka kompletnie dla mnie niezrozumiała.
December 21, 2024
I was intrigued by the concept of this book. Lilla poses a compelling argument and discusses ancient texts supporting his theory. Execution-wise, it dragged a little too much, hence the three stars. Otherwise, I enjoyed it. *Advance copy provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
May 21, 2025
Lilla's Ignorance and Bliss is eclectic, thoroughly drawn from the author's background in the "history of ideas" but sometimes staccato, wandering. It examines with verve this frequently overlooked nature of humanity, which is so often dismissed or forgotten in a world so full of information. On the whole, the exploration of ignorance, of our complex relationship with knowing---ourselves, our future, our world, our past---stimulated the imagination by bringing together diverse threads. I enjoyed it quite a lot.
There comes a point in the presentation where Lilla's concern seems principally with the Christian relation to ignorance and bliss, the Paulian counter to Bernard's truth and grace. This struck me as unfortunate at first because I think there are great sources for such exploration beyond this dominant cultural center for "the West," but it makes complete sense why this would be a focus. There are no simple answers in this book, thereby conforming to its subject matter. It is truly a meditation, sometimes loosely connected and selective but considerate and earnest. The result is thought-provoking but hazy.
Toward the end, the focus shifts toward more applied matters, toward nations and especially the United States. How does the nation-state find bliss in ignorance? Well by acclaimed lambs and by nostalgia for things past. Just as Aeneas or Hitler, there is a harkening to a pure past, an imagined origin of good that deludes us. The proximal subtext here is clearly MAGA-style political posturing, but it certainly applies more broadly. The decision not to get into specifics, not to speak of contemporary misologues and their ilk had to have been a difficult one. I think most readers would have preferred explicit lecture on this, but I expect the book is better for having excluded it. There is true virtue in the open-ended, in the invitation to experiment, to think, to reason---to contemplate. I would not be surprised if there is more here yet than even the author consciously knows.
It is not even wrong to evaluate a book's merits under the guise of some sort of simple arithmetic: pros and cons or some such schema. But I have two complaints that I want to mention nonetheless. First is that the actual origin and problem at the core of the book is not taken seriously except insofar as approaches from history and literature are laid out for the author to respond to by his own conceptualization thereof. It seems to me slightly naive or dismissive to do this, especially when the sources are drawn entirely from western tradition. There does seem to be something to this messy business, this desire not to know. Second is that some of the transitions could have been more clearly signaled. There is a real impression that the sort of flowing journey one takes could have ended up anywhere in order to discuss any societal issue whatsoever that the author wished.
There comes a point in the presentation where Lilla's concern seems principally with the Christian relation to ignorance and bliss, the Paulian counter to Bernard's truth and grace. This struck me as unfortunate at first because I think there are great sources for such exploration beyond this dominant cultural center for "the West," but it makes complete sense why this would be a focus. There are no simple answers in this book, thereby conforming to its subject matter. It is truly a meditation, sometimes loosely connected and selective but considerate and earnest. The result is thought-provoking but hazy.
Toward the end, the focus shifts toward more applied matters, toward nations and especially the United States. How does the nation-state find bliss in ignorance? Well by acclaimed lambs and by nostalgia for things past. Just as Aeneas or Hitler, there is a harkening to a pure past, an imagined origin of good that deludes us. The proximal subtext here is clearly MAGA-style political posturing, but it certainly applies more broadly. The decision not to get into specifics, not to speak of contemporary misologues and their ilk had to have been a difficult one. I think most readers would have preferred explicit lecture on this, but I expect the book is better for having excluded it. There is true virtue in the open-ended, in the invitation to experiment, to think, to reason---to contemplate. I would not be surprised if there is more here yet than even the author consciously knows.
It is not even wrong to evaluate a book's merits under the guise of some sort of simple arithmetic: pros and cons or some such schema. But I have two complaints that I want to mention nonetheless. First is that the actual origin and problem at the core of the book is not taken seriously except insofar as approaches from history and literature are laid out for the author to respond to by his own conceptualization thereof. It seems to me slightly naive or dismissive to do this, especially when the sources are drawn entirely from western tradition. There does seem to be something to this messy business, this desire not to know. Second is that some of the transitions could have been more clearly signaled. There is a real impression that the sort of flowing journey one takes could have ended up anywhere in order to discuss any societal issue whatsoever that the author wished.
July 13, 2025
😐
pierwsze sto stron było super, nawet znalazłam sobie książkę i dramat, które chcę przeczytać, bo autor tu o nich wspomniał. Nie przeszkadzało mi to, że oddalamy się do tematu, bo liczyłam, że zaraz do niego wrócimy. A potem autor zaczął gadać o świętym Pawle i tak odleciał, że ja już sama nie wiem, czy on się nie pomylił i nie dał nam tekstu innej książki. Co to miało wspólnego z błogą ignorancją?
Mam wrażenie, że autor bardzo chciał pogadać o religii i tak jakoś mu się napisało coś religijnego i wcale nie na temat.
Jestem wierząca, więc może nawet miałam nadzieję, że tak jakoś się to połączy i będę zadowolona, ale... nie mam pojęcia, o co mu chodziło. Czy to kwestia przekładu? Szczerze nie wydaje mi się. Sądzę, że autor po prostu przechodził z jednego tematu na drugi i w pewnym momencie ta główna linia mu się trochę (bardzo) zamazała.
Czy polecam w takim razie tę książkę? yyyy pierwszą połowę może i tak. 1 połowie dałabym cztery gwiazdki, 2 połowie dałabym jedną.
2,25/5 ⭐. odejmuję 0,25 ze średniej, bo jestem zwyczajnie zawiedziona 😭
Warto też dodać, że przed lekturą byłam jak „IGNORANCJA JEST ZŁA”, a dzięki tej książce przemyślałam to wszystko i zmieniłam zdanie: „ZBYT WIELKA WIEDZA JEST ZŁA”. A Potem nagle była jakaś disturbing historia pewnej dziewczynki i zastanawiałam się, jak to się łączy z fabułą. Sytuacja wygląda tak, że wcale się nie łączy, albo autor w bardzo nieumiejętny sposób to opisuje.
książka brzmi trochę jak zagadka. Autor do nas mruga, mówiąc „if you know you know”. Problem w tym, że I DON'T KNOW, YOU DON'T KNOW AND THEY DON'T KNOW.
pierwsze sto stron było super, nawet znalazłam sobie książkę i dramat, które chcę przeczytać, bo autor tu o nich wspomniał. Nie przeszkadzało mi to, że oddalamy się do tematu, bo liczyłam, że zaraz do niego wrócimy. A potem autor zaczął gadać o świętym Pawle i tak odleciał, że ja już sama nie wiem, czy on się nie pomylił i nie dał nam tekstu innej książki. Co to miało wspólnego z błogą ignorancją?
Mam wrażenie, że autor bardzo chciał pogadać o religii i tak jakoś mu się napisało coś religijnego i wcale nie na temat.
Jestem wierząca, więc może nawet miałam nadzieję, że tak jakoś się to połączy i będę zadowolona, ale... nie mam pojęcia, o co mu chodziło. Czy to kwestia przekładu? Szczerze nie wydaje mi się. Sądzę, że autor po prostu przechodził z jednego tematu na drugi i w pewnym momencie ta główna linia mu się trochę (bardzo) zamazała.
Czy polecam w takim razie tę książkę? yyyy pierwszą połowę może i tak. 1 połowie dałabym cztery gwiazdki, 2 połowie dałabym jedną.
2,25/5 ⭐. odejmuję 0,25 ze średniej, bo jestem zwyczajnie zawiedziona 😭
Warto też dodać, że przed lekturą byłam jak „IGNORANCJA JEST ZŁA”, a dzięki tej książce przemyślałam to wszystko i zmieniłam zdanie: „ZBYT WIELKA WIEDZA JEST ZŁA”. A Potem nagle była jakaś disturbing historia pewnej dziewczynki i zastanawiałam się, jak to się łączy z fabułą. Sytuacja wygląda tak, że wcale się nie łączy, albo autor w bardzo nieumiejętny sposób to opisuje.
książka brzmi trochę jak zagadka. Autor do nas mruga, mówiąc „if you know you know”. Problem w tym, że I DON'T KNOW, YOU DON'T KNOW AND THEY DON'T KNOW.
July 31, 2025
Three stars for the style and storytelling. However, the book never creates a compelling argument and it lacks defining the problem.
I had high expectations because many people were quoting the book in relation to the current political developments. During the first few chapters I appreciated the writing style, which kept me going. But early on the argumentation felt too easy. To what truth is Lilla referring: is it bare scientific facts, is it the human brains to create a story by connecting the dots? What worldview does Lilla take? So many lost opportunities to introduce well known concepts.
Also the examples often seem to miss the point. When modifying the Cave- story from Plato, it would be a perfect opportunity to introduce the idea of worldviews: to tackle the risk of stacking abstract non-existing concepts.
When telling the story of Oedipus he seems to mix the 'inconvenient truth' with 'improbable fact'. Oepidus might want to avoid the incenvenient truth about his mother, but it is also the most improbable fact that he married his mother. Why does Lilla use this example to make a point that people often don't want to accept the truth? When it is obvious that the actual truth was highly unlikely this tragedy. It is quite rational to ignore a very improbable scenario.
Finally he interprets Paul's letters from the Bible in a very strange way.
I had high expectations because many people were quoting the book in relation to the current political developments. During the first few chapters I appreciated the writing style, which kept me going. But early on the argumentation felt too easy. To what truth is Lilla referring: is it bare scientific facts, is it the human brains to create a story by connecting the dots? What worldview does Lilla take? So many lost opportunities to introduce well known concepts.
Also the examples often seem to miss the point. When modifying the Cave- story from Plato, it would be a perfect opportunity to introduce the idea of worldviews: to tackle the risk of stacking abstract non-existing concepts.
When telling the story of Oedipus he seems to mix the 'inconvenient truth' with 'improbable fact'. Oepidus might want to avoid the incenvenient truth about his mother, but it is also the most improbable fact that he married his mother. Why does Lilla use this example to make a point that people often don't want to accept the truth? When it is obvious that the actual truth was highly unlikely this tragedy. It is quite rational to ignore a very improbable scenario.
Finally he interprets Paul's letters from the Bible in a very strange way.
May 22, 2025
Mark Lilla’s Ignorance and Bliss perfectly embodies what I seek in a work of philosophical enquiry. It is concise and accessible without ever pandering or cutting corners. The author’s topic is ignorance in all its guises. This includes looking at different forms of ignorance, from inexperience to benighted nostalgia, but also giving consideration to why humans and their cultures often incline toward ignorance.
The book is the opposite of a polemic, yet Lilla doesn’t shy away from taking firm stances on religious or political matters. He is explicit in his critique of Christianity’s pervasive embrace of anti-intellectual creeds and implicit in connecting the rise of Trumpism to willful self-delusion on the part of many Americans.
According to Lilla, ignorance is not always undesirable, and this is why his book is as topical as it is timeless. We live in the Information Age, which might as well be called the Information Flood. We are all inundated with words, images, opinions and data; we risk drowning in this sea of stimuli. The art of survival may well depend upon our ability to judge what we do and don’t need to know. For that purpose, this book is an excellent instruction manual.
The book is the opposite of a polemic, yet Lilla doesn’t shy away from taking firm stances on religious or political matters. He is explicit in his critique of Christianity’s pervasive embrace of anti-intellectual creeds and implicit in connecting the rise of Trumpism to willful self-delusion on the part of many Americans.
According to Lilla, ignorance is not always undesirable, and this is why his book is as topical as it is timeless. We live in the Information Age, which might as well be called the Information Flood. We are all inundated with words, images, opinions and data; we risk drowning in this sea of stimuli. The art of survival may well depend upon our ability to judge what we do and don’t need to know. For that purpose, this book is an excellent instruction manual.
April 2, 2025
I was disappointed in this book because I assumed it was something that it was not.
I assumed that a book on wanting not to know would address our current political landscape. This book takes a broader look at the issue.
Lilla looks at mysticism, for example, as a way to avoid having to learn facts. "The will to ignorance is a wily character and is not above masquerading as a more elevated will to knowledge. It makes the promise that if abandon what little sure knowledge we possess, and silence the skeptical voice of reason within, we will be filled with a knowledge beyond all reason and experience." That is an elegant way to make an important point.
He points out how Paul in the First letter to the Corinthians explicitly rejects knowledge. "If any man among you seems to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of the world is foolishness with God."
He has an interesting look at willful self-delusion. He looks at when it could be necessary and at Freud on the issue. He looks at taboo and nostalgia as ways to stay ignorant.
This is high level look at an important issue. I wish it had more current bite.
I assumed that a book on wanting not to know would address our current political landscape. This book takes a broader look at the issue.
Lilla looks at mysticism, for example, as a way to avoid having to learn facts. "The will to ignorance is a wily character and is not above masquerading as a more elevated will to knowledge. It makes the promise that if abandon what little sure knowledge we possess, and silence the skeptical voice of reason within, we will be filled with a knowledge beyond all reason and experience." That is an elegant way to make an important point.
He points out how Paul in the First letter to the Corinthians explicitly rejects knowledge. "If any man among you seems to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of the world is foolishness with God."
He has an interesting look at willful self-delusion. He looks at when it could be necessary and at Freud on the issue. He looks at taboo and nostalgia as ways to stay ignorant.
This is high level look at an important issue. I wish it had more current bite.
December 16, 2024
With a well-researched basis exploring the antiquities, Mr. Lilla explains that human wherewithal to choose "ignorance or bliss" is within us all. His discussion about the nature of nostalgia contrasts the enlightened and the damned. Ultimately, we choose to face the truths and realities of our lives through awareness and perspective and by choosing either to "adventure" or to "flee." The onus is on us.
This book is both a history and philosophical pedagogy with pertinent thought about living today.
This book is both a history and philosophical pedagogy with pertinent thought about living today.
May 7, 2025
Uhhh what did I just read? There were some clear and impactful thoughts in here, but the majority just felt like the author had a lot of biblical and mythological references to dump from a previous book. Maybe this is the point, but I finished this book not knowing what the book was actually about.
After the tenth time looking up the definition of a word, I gave up on trying to understand and just accepted that I don’t know. context clues don’t help when the sentences relentlessly endure their sixth line of text.
Much of this went over my head. I’m comfortable NOT knowing.
After the tenth time looking up the definition of a word, I gave up on trying to understand and just accepted that I don’t know. context clues don’t help when the sentences relentlessly endure their sixth line of text.
Much of this went over my head. I’m comfortable NOT knowing.
December 29, 2024
The book wraps up nicely and bumped me from four to five stars. Throughout my reading of the book it felt disjointed and not quite hitting the theme of ignorance, but how do you write about what you don't know or don't want to know? Given the task undertaken, I can only say well done for the reminder of how much we chose to simply ignore.
September 17, 2025
I loved this book for the way it portrays our fragility as humans, for its reference to both myth and history and for the way it is cleverly crafted into five essays that delve into both the advantages and disadvantages of knowing and not knowing. Thought-provoking and something that I will read more than once. Thanks Mark Lilla.
January 31, 2025
Provocative. Read while traveling and when home will re-read with pen in hand and notebook for reflections. I find a closing line, “The harder the truth, the greater the temptation to escape it” challenging. Well, the entire book is.
February 12, 2025
written from an agnostic point of view, such a hopeless view of knowledge/poverty!
“know thyself, but not in excess”
“know thyself, but not in excess”
February 13, 2025
This is an amazing book that will change your life! The author should definitely have more recognition!
March 8, 2025
Onderhoudend, origineel, maar ook wat flodderig. Aan het eind van een boeiend verhaal denk je: en wat ben ik nu wijzer geworden? En dan komt het antwoord maar half, althans bij mij.
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April 16, 2025Dnf
September 2, 2025
nie jest to książka o osobach, które "wolą nie wiedzieć" i o ignorancji, a o książkach, które lubi autor i o jego przemyśleniach o religii.
June 2, 2025
Thought provoking. Some important ideas about willful ignorance rooted in Greek and Roman myths and in the history and practice of Christianity. Not a comprehensive treatment of a subject that threatens to devour the world (e.g. climate change denial, vaccine skepticism,...) but stimulating all the same.
April 23, 2025
RK AUDIBLE PREORDER PUB APRIL 15, 2025
DMPL EXAMINED 2/3/2025 FRONT TABLE https://semcoop.us9.list-manage.com/t...
Page 7 and following: "Our lives, though, are not made up of a string of discrete, unrelated moments in which we decide to seek knowledge about one thing, then decide not to seek it about another. Life is not an assembly-line job where we are tasked with sorting experiences into one box or another—want to know, don't want to know—as they chug down the conveyor belt... " ff
DMPL EXAMINED 2/3/2025 FRONT TABLE https://semcoop.us9.list-manage.com/t...
Page 7 and following: "Our lives, though, are not made up of a string of discrete, unrelated moments in which we decide to seek knowledge about one thing, then decide not to seek it about another. Life is not an assembly-line job where we are tasked with sorting experiences into one box or another—want to know, don't want to know—as they chug down the conveyor belt... " ff
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