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Exercise A
1) Which leaders does Russell say were able to mix knowledge and wisdom
soundly?
Ans: Queen Elizabeth I in England, Henry IV in France and Abraham Lincoln
in the United States of America were the leaders Bertrand Russell says who
were able to mix knowledge and wisdom soundly.
Exercise B
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Knowledge and Wisdom 2
Exercise C
2) What are the four factors that Russell refers to in the essay?
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Knowledge and Wisdom 3
Russell believes that there are several factors that contribute to wisdom.
The first factor is a sense of proportion. He defines it as the capacity to
take account of all the important factors in a problem and to attach to
each its due weight. It refers to the ability to get a comprehensive view
of a problem, and at the same time, note which aspect is more important
and which is less.
Russell also stresses on the need to try and view the world with
impartiality although to the view the world with complete impartiality is
impossible. Wisdom grows when we become more impartial.
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Knowledge and Wisdom 4
leaders Russell says who were able to mix knowledge and wisdom
soundly.
4) Why does Russell say that Hegel’s philosophy of history was lacking in
wisdom?
Knowledge and wisdom are different things. Wisdom does not come
immediately with knowledge. According to Russell, knowledge is
defined as the acquisition of data and information, while wisdom is
defined as the practical application and use of the knowledge to create
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Knowledge and Wisdom 5
Ans: The given lines are extracted from the essay ‘Knowledge and
Wisdom’ written by Bertrand Russell. He says that to have knowledge
without wisdom is to miss the true purpose of life as only wisdom can
prevent the misuse the knowledge.
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