Michael Mans

Academic Decathlon
Speech Draft 1
Ignorance, the Answer to a Question I Forgot
Ignorance! Isnt that what we all really want? To be able to walk down
the street whether it be r!sh ho!r or " A#M# and not ha$e a care in the
world not towards the car barreling towards !s nor towards the plane abo!t
to take o!t the o$erpass# %hy wo!ld anybody li$e their life worrying abo!t
the world aro!nd them when they can &!st parade like drones? %e sho!ldnt
be planning for apocalypses or o!r f!t!re we sho!ld be walking o' cli's &!st
to see what happens o!r heads de$oid of knowledge and reason#
In (latos allegory of the ca$e he describe people who are forced to
stare at a wall for their entire e)istence ne$er knowing anything else# *ehind
them are p!ppeteers casting magni+cent shadows on the wall before them
and occasionally letting o!t an echo# Say there are fo!r prisoners all they
know is that dimly lit wall and the hands in front of them# ,ne day one of the
prisoners is released and shown the p!ppets whose details are e$en more
magni+cent than their silho!ettes# This freeman is then led o!t of the ca$e
and into the s!nlight where he is o$erwhelmed by the warmth and intensity
of the light on his $irgin eyes and as he faces reality he adapts to the light#
-e sees the shadows then the sky then the s!n# -e has pity on the other
three who remain in the ca$e b!t when he ret!rns he is pitied sco'ed# To the
others he has spoiled his eyes# -e can no longer see these .wondro!s/
shadows and once again climbs o!t of the ca$e# (lato goes on to state that
once yo! see the tr!th yo! will ne$er be satis+ed with ignorance yo! will
e$en be ridic!led by the ignorant#
,b$io!sly the answer to this is to ne$er lea$e the ca$e ne$er look
behind yo! at the p!ppeteers# If yo! ne$er know anything b!t ignorance
then yo! ne$er know what yo!re missing# %hy face reality when yo! can
fore$er be a pet to those whose carry the b!rden of knowledge# They ha$e
their basic needs f!l+lled0 food water shelter to hell with the rest of
Maslows hierarchy! The iss!e with society is that we are ne$er pleased with
what we ha$e beca!se we acknowledge what we dont# Ignorance is always
the answer! 1et !s be the many sheep to the few shepherds regardless of
their intentions for !s# 1et them herd !s into the sla!ghter ho!se for all we
know2 act!ally we know nothing so whate$er happens is irrele$ant#
A spikey3haired mishce$io!s si)3year3old with an imaginary tiger once
said .2 if yo! willf!lly st!pid yo! dont know any better so yo! can keep
doing whate$er yo! like!/ 4al$in knew how the world works# 5rom a yo!ng
age he knew that ignorance is bliss if yo!re ignorant then yo! ha$e no
personal acco!ntability and what is personal acco!ntability other than self3
p!nishment and dissatisfaction# At the end of the strip after ha$ing t!mbled
o' a cli' in a red wagon -obbes says .Im not s!re I can stand so m!ch
bliss#/ 4al$in retorts .4aref!l! %e dont want to learn anything from this#/ At
Michael Mans
Academic Decathlon
Speech Draft 1
s!ch a yo!ng age 4al$in new how to be happy despite the many in&!ries he
wo!ld in6ict on himself he aims to achie$e what others cannot#
So let !s choose ignorance nay happiness! Allow !s to follow the
g!iding hand of those who ha$e so foolishly chosen to see the s!n# 1et them
feed !s and clothes !s and do with !s what we want# If we ha$e to
e)pectations or standards based on knowledge we can ne$er be
disappointed# Ignorance is the only answer#