Wisdom

How does one come to have the character and practical wisdom to know what is ethically required in one’s communication with others? In the Navy we have an “Ethos” and part of it states, “integrity is the foundation of our conduct, respect for others is fundamental to our character, decisive leadership is crucial to our success”. This mirrors in part with what Newer and Sanding (2007) state, “the person who has integrity or good character relies on his or her good judgment to act ethically in each given situation”, (p. 7).

I don’t believe one is born with the traits of a virtuous person, these are learned through the actions of others particularly the parent. “Set the example and do the right thing even when you think no one is looking’, I can’t tell you how many times I have uttered these words to my Sailors and my boys. But I know it is my actions that both are scrutinizing. For example, I was once offered to have a course marked as complete by a First Class Petty Officer because he commented on how busy he knew I was and was sure I had employed the course several times during my time in the service.

I quickly responded with, “that it wasn’t necessary for him to that and I would complete the course like he and the others in my department had done”. Later he told me he was testing me because he was looking for a mentor. Actions speak volumes for your character. As for the second part of the question, I believe character and practical wisdom are developed through those we Interact with and experiences we have In life.

We gain practical wisdom from every situation we are Involved In and how we Andre the situation develops our character In the eyes of those who observe our actions. As Aristotle stated, “sound, practical wisdom and sound character must always be the gulled In these situations”, (Newer & Sandal, 2007, p. 30).

My Words of Wisdom We are all human beings who need to live together on the same earth, but different environments have different characteristics that can help us achieve goals. Some of us like to stay in the safe zone and enjoy the tranquil moments; some of us like to conquer the Nonverbal of our imagination and enjoy exciting moments; some of us with creative spirits enjoy taking extraordinary journeys. No matter which type of life we choose or which type characteristics we have, challenge always acts as a naughty kid, who hides in he corner and makes us either scream and run away or smile and embrace him as a friend.

Lee Perry said, “You can do what you think you can do, so think you can do it, and do it. ” The image math gave to me is a weirdo model consisting of a digital compiled body covered by parabola hair send out flashing radical signals once in a while. The model’s circular face is embedded with lonely points for eyes and a logical expression that IS dry and without tedious emotions. When we draw close to it, we feel like we are lost in a barren dessert. There we step into a sea of sand, dazed by the mirages of different types of questions which make us flounder hopelessly to find our direction.

Although our survival desire is strong, we are too often too lethargic to stand up and confront our delusions of grandeur. Every time when I attended math class, I was scared to step into the classroom. Why? Not all Asians are geniuses at math; at least I am the one who is not. The math terminology spoken out from the math teacher was an alien language that blew through my ears and left a breeze in my brain but no knowledge manned. The problem or test I got from the math class was like a blank puzzle, but had no idea how to solve it.

I finally find the way to solve this problem. I realized that there was no way that I could solve this problem or test; so I quit. Coming to the U. S. Gave me a second chance to retake the math, and I appreciate this chance. With a speeding heartbeat, I walked into my first math class (MAT 120) at MAC. In my mind, felt a bunch of questions swirling like a whirlwind around in my brain. I imagined that I heard a devil’s choice shouting out with a contemptuous laugh, “You think you will understand the math in English?

There’s no way! ” In my deepest mind, a voice burst out like a volcano, and the energy flowed into every cell of my body: “In the future, do not look back and view your life with regret; do the best you can now so that you can look forward to a promising future. ” “Challenge accepted! ” I told myself. Every class when I listen to the lesson, my ears start to translate the instructor’s words, and save information into my memory area. I do not skip the difficult problems.

I read the book to understand the examples, ask friends, teachers, and tutors questions about what I do not fully understand to help me boost my knowledge. Spend whole afternoons working with tutors and studying in the math center to finish my homework. Gradually, the way American instructors teach me becomes like a sparkling rope that guides me in the right direction as take the long, dark journey to conquer math. The method that tutors taught me like a sword of wisdom to help me eliminate the math enemies. I realize that I enjoy the moment when my pen writes out the right answers to problems.

I enjoy seeing those numbers dance with cheerful rhythm to celebrate their lively show in the realistic world. In that moment, I know that I have learned how to treat math as a part of my life, not a weirdo model that I am scared to touch. When I received the highest score after finishing my first math class at MAC, I was crying and laughing. The complex emotions I felt were like a salad mixed with different ingredients, full of sweet, sour, spicy, and bitter tastes. Challenges are monsters if people are too scared to confront them and convert them onto allies.

Challenges are only fortunate if people embrace them as they are, accept the responsibility to grow to deserve them, and dedicate themselves to making them a vibrant part of their lives. Then, in old age, people can look back upon their lives and see how the path that they have taken has led them upward to a mountain top. From this summit, they can view the distant valleys and say to themselves, “l have followed a good path, have kept the Way, and I have achieved my goals. I have lived a good life. Now, look forward to my next challenge. “

Jeremiah learned a lesson that is its deep understanding of the limitations of human beings that we cannot live a decent and satisfying life without constant guidance of Almighty God. Through the book of Jeremiah, who first taught me is, how servants of God are called to serve Him and how the Almighty chose to serve his servant from the womb itself. “Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”  Jeremiah the Prophet was commissioned from the womb of his mother for his sacred duty. There are some things here that is beautiful and wonderful, when we consider what it says about the knowledge of God. God told Jeremiah that he “knew” before he was created in the womb. He already knows the strengths and weaknesses of Jeremiah. He knew that Jeremiah would be what God wants to use during certain periods of the history of Israel.

Every servant of God had their own commissioned to serve Him in various office. Strong Relationship with GodJeremiah has a long-term relationship with God. Over time, he learned to inspire and trust him with positive results from many experiments that took place in the office. The righteous prophets, who tell the truth about the national condition, are not human. Jeremiah has some real friends. But God is the first in the life of this prophet. He knows and obeys God as Creator. Jeremiah was chosen to record one of the deepest parts of the Bible by God. “Thus says the Lord:” Give to the wise not to praise his wisdom, not to give a strong glory to man in his power, nor to leave the glory of riches and riches? But he who glorifies this glory, who understands and knows me, who God is, makes love, judgment, and justice on earth.

Jeremiah the Rescuer Despite the different circumstances, the prophet Jeremiah lived in a period of national chaos at a time when it looked like the current climate of uncertainty and anxiety. The faith, according to Jeremiah, is supported and supported by God’s personal commitment to him. Jeremiah says “Then the Lord returned his hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said, “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. Today, I have made all these nations and over the kingdom, destroy and exterminate, build and “. We can see the contents of the book itself, which Jeremiah prophesied during the period of sudden decline and ultimately the capture of the country of Judah. This is a prominent voice in the expression of God’s matter for his people. Over the course of about 40 years, Jeremiah prophesied during the reign of the five different kings of Judah by the worthy Josiah.

Guide trouble with it, let Jeremiah learned a few lessons about the nature of God and the very human condition that men and women of the this century must understand and acknowledge the commission of God given to them and to save nations or people.Relying on God alone.Most of the time we forgot to relying on God when the time of persecutions. But in this book teach us, despite the severe persecution of his people, Jeremiah knew that the Supreme Lord was the absolute control of these events. Many compatriots do not, and some of them continue to weaken their message, directly from the Creator. But God had said: “I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled” .Our Creator has a clear planning and purpose for the salvation of mankind. Some things in this world make sense only if we accept this fact.

For all Judah, who were attending the day of Jeremiah, God promised them that he would bless them when they were captured in Babylon. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you” .Great commisionGod does not like to punish Judah for national and personal sin. He sent prophets to warn them in advance, but the nation has ignored. “In vain I have chastened your children; they received no correction”. So, national captivity became a necessity. What are the teachings of our world today? What we can learn by this? Of cause it’s become the reflection of today’s world. Before the disaster of Judah, Jeremiah expressed repentance by the people for the people of his. “Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place”. God calls people to conversion and personal Judah nations , but it did not happen. We can get it that many benefits from the guidance of His constant regardless of how bad the country was left. “O Lord, correct me, but with justice; do with your anger, lest thou not think do not matter”. Can pray the same prayer today for our country Malaysia? Yes we can because God the Almighty is the same yesterday-today- and tomorrow.

Surely he will listen to our prayer. Accept the Rebuke.Jeremiah was human and had failings, but at least he honestly admitted them to God. Instead of piously covering up his true feeling, he pour out his heart to the Lord and the Lord answer him. He asks God, that he wonders why the pain and loneliness seem to be unending! He wonders whether God will fail him. Will God be like an unreliable and seasonal brook? God’s answer may shock the prophet, for the Lord told him he needed to repent, if he repent God will restore him that he may serve the Lord, if Jeremiah utter worthy, not worthless, word, so that he may be the spokesman.

The Lord always balance rebuke with assurance. He promised once again to make Jeremiah a fortified wall and give him victory over all enemies. Jeremiah had to learn to walk by faith, which meant obeying God’s word no matter how he felt, what he saw, or what people might do to him. God never promised Jeremiah an easy job, but He did promise Jeremiah all that he need to do His work faithfully. God reminds Jeremiah that the suffering he has experienced is exactly like what God had told him. Jeremiah then, is not to crumble in the face of adversity but rather redouble his commitment to his prophetic vocation. Persecution has not derailed God’s promise to deliver and vindicate (verse 20), and God reminds Jeremiah that his perseverance is the very vehicle by which the people are won over to repentance .

Conclusion

Is it incredible for God’s chosen servants to be weak and harm their own ministries? No. Because every servant of God is a human being and is subject to the weakness of human nature. Example; Moses became discouraged and wanted to die ; Joshua was willing to stop and leave the land of promise , Elijah even left his place of duty and hoped to die  and Jonah was angry and he refused to help the person he came to rescue. God does not want us to ignore our feelings, because it will make us less than human beings, but He wants us to trust Him to change our feelings and to walk with faith in Him.The book of Jeremiah teaches that honesty and faithfulness in the midst of suffering are signs of prophetic service and a lesson that is its deep understanding of the limitations of human beings that we cannot live a decent and satisfying life without constant guidance of Almighty God. The announcement of the prophet to his initial call was a way in which God would carry out his redemptive work in the world and reaffirm the promises of liberation.

Diltej Singh Does Suffering lead to wisdom? Through life if there is one thing that everyone sees, it’s suffering. We all have seen it, if you haven’t you will in time. Even the short stories that we have read this year we have also seen it in them. It’s hard to see people go through that suffering, but do people gain any wisdom from that suffering. Through the short stories that we have read this year, we have seen on many occasions that it did not.

One of those times is in the short story ‘The Discus Thrower’ we see that the man is in much pain, and clearly is suffering and yet he is mean to the nurse and makes them do things that they shouldn’t have to do. Another story that had suffering was ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ we see her suffer and not once do we see her stop and think about what she is doing why. We just see her going crazy. The last story we see suffering is in ‘The School’, we see that theirs is constant death in the story they don’t know what to do after so they keep buy and getting new things to replace the feelings they had they had for the animals, people, and plants.

So they aren’t gaining anything The man in the Discus thrower is clearly suffering he his “skin is not brown from the sun. It rusted, rather, in the last stage of containing the vile repose within. And the blue eyes are frosted, looking inward like the windows of snowbound cottage. He is blind. The man is also legless; his right leg was missing from the mid-thigh down and left from below the knee. ” With all these disabilities, he is still is asks the doctor to get his shoes “with the least amount of irony. ” You wonder why he asking for them even though he has no feet.

He makes the nurse clean eggs that he threw at the wall and he does this every single day. You expect someone in this situation to be more caring, looking at life in different perspectives, think about something different they should have done and maybe things would have turned out in a different way. But instead we see him act different then we would see anyone else in his place. Then we see the nurse cheering and then we find out that he died. He leaves behind nothing but bad experience and memories for the nurses. He created nothing but a bad experience for himself. Throughout this whole story we don’t see any form of wisdom once.

The women from yellow wallpaper might not be suffering physically but is suffering mentally. She’s told that she can’t do anything creative or fun. All she can do is lay in bed. Slowly she is suffering, she is mentally warring down. She we see her going mentally insane. She starts staring at the wall and see shapes and then eventually she sees a figure in the wall. At the end of the story she goes crazy by locking the door and tells her husband that the key is at the front door. And when he comes and he faints and she tore as much wallpaper as she could and she herself was on the on ground crawling’s.

As we see that she goes insane and she gets no wisdom. We ended of her crawling over him so we know anything can happen after that. We see that in the school they clearly have lost many things to death and they don’t try to figure out why everything is dying but keep replacing them with other things just to get the emotions and feelings back. In the story trees, salamander, tropical fish, Edgar, moms and dads, Matthew and Tiny die for one reason or another, they one time the students ask where all died things go he says I don’t know. Then they say is death that which gives meaning to life.

They go into a serious conversation and then they hear a knock on the door and a gerbil walks in, the children cheer wildly. We see that children don’t gain anything from these deaths. As we in none of these characters get and wisdom after they have been see suffering. Most people now don’t even get wisdom from when they suffer. They live life going through pain like the man from the discus thrower; go crazy like the women did from the yellow wallpaper. Or go through life not realizing, or simple try to keep what they might lose, like the kids in the short story school.

God in our lives. There is no point to have money if we do not have God. For example, “Great wealth without the peace Of God has little benefit” (1 6; 28:6). Also, ‘Wealth gained through corruption will eventually be judged” (22: 16, 22-23; 28:8, 20). There are so many proverbs on wealth and poverty, but the general idea is that working hard leads to wealth, and laziness and corruption leads to poverty. These are general principles that can be followed but are not always perfect in design.

The book of Hebrews also speaks of sides and folly, especially chapter 9. For example, in Proverbs 9, two women are compared: one is wisdom and one is folly. The one named Wisdom built her home around seven pillars and prepared a feast for everyone who wanted to attend. She even cried out loudly so that everyone could hear her invitation. On the other hand, the woman of folly cried out even louder. She is without knowledge but still cries out to those “who are straight on their way’ (Provo. 9:15).

Her main target is believers who are following God and she will keep crying louder and louder. This applies to the world today because it is easier to give in to the woman of folly, because she is screaming so loudly. Just as the book of Proverbs compares diligence and laziness, it also compares wisdom to folly. It is almost as if they are on opposite sides of a scale and one will always weigh more in our lives. Hinds and Yates explain that the book of Proverbs “continually presents a sharp contrast between the life of wisdom and the life of folly” (p. 263).

Wisdom and folly is “often a contrast between righteousness and sidedness,” and the contrast is not for a person with “street smarts,” but a person with a close relationship with God (p. 263). This means that it does not matter how many education degrees a person has, if they are not close with God, and fearing God, they cannot possibly be wise. This would apply to a wealthy business owner who seems to have it all, but does not have God so he is a fool. Smartness from the world’s perspective is not wisdom in God’s eyes. Bibliography Hinds, Deed and Gary Yates. Essence Of the Old Testament: A Survey. Nashville: publishing, 2012.

Reflecting On Wisdom PSY 220 March 9, 2013 Colleen Moore Reflecting On Wisdom The attributes that are commonly associated with wise people are: Reasoning Ability, Sagacity, Learning from Ideas and the Environment, Judgment, Expeditious use of Information and Perspicacity. Reasoning Ability is the uncommon ability to look at a problem and solve it through good logical reasoning ability, by applying knowledge to particular problems, by integrating information and theories in new ways, and by possessing a huge store of knowledge.

Sagacity is the keen understanding of human nature, thoughtfulness, fairness, good listening abilities, knowledge of self and placing value on the advice and knowledge of others. Learning from Ideas and the Environment places value on ideas, is perceptive, and learns from others’ mistakes. Judgment has good sensible judgment at all times, takes a long-term rather than a short-term view, and thinks before acting and speaking. Expeditious use of Information learns and retains information from experience (both mistakes and successes), willingness to change one’s mind based on new experience.

Perspicacity Demonstrates perceptiveness, intuition, ability to see through things, read between the lines; and discern the truth and the right thing to do. (Bumgardener & Crothers, 2009) A person I believe would be wise would be Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ who is known from the Bible as the son of God. (II Samuel 7:12-14 King James Bible) Jesus had all six of the characteristics named in the above paragraph. Jesus who was the son of God was sent to the world to save the world to teach the gospels and to help save the world from sin. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16 King James Bible). Jesus went to many cities throughout his life preaching the gospels and healing the six, casting our demons and raising the dead. Any person who believed that Jesus was the son of God and had enough faith would be healed. (John 4:43-54 King James Bible) Jesus was a very wise man because he studied the gospels, he spent many hours in prayer, and he also went to the tabernacles to learn and to preach and to heal those in need of healing. Mark 1:21-28, Luke 4:31-37) Jesus was a very compassionate man and when people who had the faith would cry out to him for healing he would heal them because their faith was very strong. An example of this would be when Jesus had left the city of Jericho he had a mass following of people traveling with him when they had come upon two blind men. The blind men heard the crowd and asked what was going on and once they were told they had cried out to Jesus to not pass them by and to please heal them of their blindness.

The crowd that was following Jesus tried to rebuke them because they figured the blind men weren’t worthy enough for a healing or they just did not want the blind men to bother Jesus, but the blind men cried out to Jesus in persistence because they believed and had the faith to know that Jesus could heal them, Jesus then called out to the blind men and asked what they wanted and they had said they wanted their eye sight back, so Jesus seeing that they had the faith told them to arise and that because of their faith they were healed and could see again. Once the Blind men were healed they followed Jesus and were glorifying God. Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43 King James Bible) Jesus was wise in the ways that he taught his parables. For example in (Luke 10:25-42 King James Bible), a man who was an expert in the law decided to test Jesus by asking him “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? ” Jesus then said to the man, “What is written in the law? How do you read it? The man answered “Though shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all they mind; and they neighbors as thyself. Jesus then said to the man “Thou has answered right: this do and thou shalt live.

Again the man wanted to justify himself so he asked Jesus “Who is my neighbor? ” Jesus then replied to him with a story about a man who had come from Jerusalem to Jericho and ran into some thieves who stripped the man of his clothes and beat him half to death and then left. The man who had been beaten lay on the ground and had been passed by two people who looked at him and left without helping the man. A third man “The Good Samaritan” came by and saw the wounded man on the ground and had left but came back with supplies to clean the wounded man and bandage him up. Then the Good Samaritan took him to an inn to take care of him.

The next day the good Samaritan man got up and before he left, he gave the inn keeper money and told the inn keeper and told him to take care of the wounded man and that any extra money that the inn keeper has to use he will repay him once he returns. Then once Jesus was finished with the story he said to the man who was and expert in the law “Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among thieves? “ The man then said “He that shewed mercy on him. ” Then Jesus said “Go and do thou Likewise. ” One of the attributes I believe I have fully developed would be Judgment.

I may not always use the best judgment at all times, but I feel that my judgment is usually sensible and thought out as sensible as I can make it. When something comes up that I have to use my judgment for, I try to sit and think it through as much as possible to find the best possible outcome for the solution. I feel that I would need to fully develop all of the attributes discussed in chapter 10 of the reading. These are things that every person has to learn throughout their lives and will continue to develop through the years. Reference (Bumgardener & Crothers, 2009) (King James Bible)

Bennett explores the fine line between wisdom and foolishness in ‘The History Boys’. Discuss with reference to this comedic drama. The fine line between wisdom and foolery has often been explored and blurred in dramatic comedies throughout the ages. Often, in Shakespeare’s plays especially, the fool figure turns out to be the wisest figure out of all of the other characters, and is used as a way to make a comment on the social context of the time.

This theme is present in ‘The History Boys’, as Bennett mostly uses characters as a way of exploring the fine line. He also uses scenes and themes during the play to explore the fine line between wisdom and foolishness, but he tends to focus on using the characters to explore the line instead. The Headmaster is a character with whom, when first introduced to, the audience would appoint the title of ‘foolish’, as Bennett shows him to be a very foolish character.

However, this would differ from Shakespeare’s fool; in his plays the fools were often the wisest of characters, but in this circumstance, with this character, the Headmaster acts foolish without becoming ‘the fool’ from Shakespeare, as the Headmaster doesn’t have the hidden wisdom and knowledge Shakespeare’s fools had. For instance, when discussing competing schools in the league tables with Mrs Lintott, he says ‘…Leighton Park. Or is than an open prison?

No matter…’ This quote shows the reader what a foolish man Bennett has created; a headmaster not knowing the difference between a competing school in the league tables and a prison is absurd. However, it helps Bennett to show the fine line between wisdom and foolery, as some members of the audience may think that the Headmaster is wise in some of the decisions he makes, as he does know methods to get the students to achieve academic levels that allow entry into Oxbridge.

Another moment where Bennett explores the fine line is when he says, upon discussing Oxbridge with the supply teacher Irwin, ‘I thought of going to, but this was the fifties. Change was in the air…’ The first impression given of him from this line of speech is that the characters around him must be able to see through his lies and see the fool that he ultimately is; in the fifties, life was the same as in the forties; it was the sixties where ‘change was in the air’ and the characters around the Headmaster would know that he was ying to cover the fact that he wasn’t academically smart enough to attend Oxbridge. This does show him to hold some wisdom, however, as he was smart enough to cover up the fact that he didn’t attend Oxbridge, even if the lie wasn’t successful, and that he is wise as he does want the best for the boys, but again, this is outweighed by the foolish decision that is to get the boys to Oxbridge to raise the school in the league tables to ‘…enhance its reputation and thereby his own career…’ showing he is mostly trying to get the boys do to well for his benefit.

Bennett also uses the character of the Headmaster to make a social comment of the schooling at the time he wrote the play, hinting that headmasters of schools often tried to get the better grades for the students only to pull their school up in the league tables, and thereby improve their own reputations of headmasters. A second character Bennett uses to explore the fine line between wisdom and foolishness is Hector, one of the boy’s teachers.

One of the first impressions we get of Hector is that he is a character who Bennett presents to be very wise; he has taught the boys so well they can quote literature at any time of the day in the correct context ‘…Posner (Edgar) ‘Look up, My Lord. ’ Timms (Kent) ‘Vex not his ghost…’ This is quite a feat to achieve, and it also shows that he too knows and understands when and where to quote literature, again showing his wisdom.

However, this is a point where Bennett does show how fine the line between wisdom and foolishness actually is, as some people may view this skill as useless, as it probably won’t be able to help them in their university or working life, unless they pursue a career where literature and the need to quote it is needed, so this act may be viewed as quite foolish; spending time teaching the boys something they probably won’t need in their future lives, despite the fact that they and Hector may be considered wise for having this skill.

Bennett does show Hector to be a character who does act very foolish sometimes; ‘No Headmaster, (He covers his ears. )…Non. Absolument non. Non. Non. Non…’. The stage directions used here make Hector act like a naughty child who is refusing to stop what they’re doing; a grown man, who is a teacher nonetheless, acting this way does appear to be a fool to people around him, even if they know he is only pretending. However, this is one of the moments where you can explicitly tell that Bennett is exploring the fine line etween wisdom and foolishness and is showing indeed how very fine it is; some people may see past Hector acting like a fool and see him to be very wise; he knows that if he carries on refusing to do what the Headmaster askes of him, the Headmaster may well just give up and drop the subject. This could be down to the fact that Hector doesn’t view the Headmaster as a wise man; more of a fool who you can walk over and expect to carry on doing things the way you want to, even if the Headmaster is against it. ‘A hand on a boy’s genitals at fifty miles an hour, and you call it nothing? This is a very important quote in showing how Bennett explores the fine line. Hector is a very wise man; he has a deep understanding and knowledge of literature, he has helped get the boys A-Levels up to the standards of Oxbridge and is, academically, quite smart. However, the quote shows that, in terms of his judgements, he is quite a fool; the acts he performed were frowned upon by society at the time, and show to many people that he has crossed the line between wisdom and foolishness with ease without really realising it. …transmission of knowledge…’ This also shows how his judgements are foolish, and how he can be seen to be a fool by many people; when he is confronted about his actions, he uses quotes from poetry to try to get out of the confrontation. By the end of the play, many people would probably see Hector as a very wise man, but a man who has the tendency to cross the fine line between wisdom and foolishness, whilst others would see him as only being a fool, despite his knowledge in literature.

Overall, Hector is probably Bennett’s main way to explore the fine line between wisdom and foolishness, as Hector crosses the line countless times without realising it himself. Another way Bennett explores the fine line between wisdom and foolishness is by using scenes, such as the French Scene. This scene takes place towards the start of the play, and is where Hector and the boys practise speaking fluent French by acting out a scene of their choice in French. Mais une maison de passe ou tous les clients utilisent le subjonctif ou le conditionnel, oui? ’ (But a brothel where all clients use the subjunctive or conditional, yes? ) This quote is taken from the scene and helps to show the wise and the foolish sides of Hector; he and the students are acting out a scene in fluent French (which in itself is a very academic skill for the students to have learnt) and Hector is quite wise in getting them to practise using their French in everyday scenes, thus improving their fluency.

However, the foolish part is the fact that the scene they are all acting out is a brothel, which is a very foolish thing to do considering where they are (in a school), but the fact that Hector keeps on going on about their grammar whilst speaking French does show some wisdom, with the fact that he knows exactly how to get the boys to improve their fluency and grammatical skill in French, but in a very foolish circumstance. A third way the fine line between wisdom and foolishness is through themes; specifically the themes of sexuality and sex.

For sexuality; ‘…Don’t touch him…’ This quote is quite important in showing the fine line between wisdom and foolishness, as it is said when Hector and Irwin are discussing Hector’s early retirement, teaching and Dakin. Bennett shows here that Hector’s foolish decisions have turned him into a wiser man, who is advising Irwin on how not to make the same foolish mistake he did. The foolishness here makes the scene quite tragic rather than comic. For the theme of sex, the fine line is explored when Dakin and Scripps have a conversation together about Fiona (the Headmaster’s secretary). …like particularly her tits, which only fell after a prolonged campaign some three weeks ago…’ The wordplay in this conversation is very foolish indeed, which Scripps finds funny albeit embarrassing, but the wisdom in Dakin is evident by the way Dakin applies military logistics to a new context with ease, using the semantic field of war. Overall, these are the main ways Bennett uses to explore the fine line between wisdom and foolishness in ‘The History Boys’, mainly using the characters of the Headmaster and Hector.