Examples Of Wisdom In A Worn Path By Eudora Welty

Decent Essays
According to a standard dictionary, wisdom is the quality or state of being wise; the knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight (Dictionary). While this definition may seem true simply because it came from a dictionary, there are multiple examples of support that can be found in an everyday lifestyle and also in the passage A Worn Path by Eudora Welty. In an everyday life, wisdom is gained in a variety of ways and at a variety of ages. A toddler can gain wisdom by touching a hot stove. The sensation of burning will teach the toddler the valuable lesson of avoiding hot stoves in the future; teaching wisdom. Teenagers often gain wisdom through various driving situations. One …show more content…
Phoenix is described as an old Negro woman who walks with a cane. Throughout the beginning of the story Phoenix is walking through the woods to get to town. She encounters many obstacles that try to stop her journey, but she always continues forward. “Seems like there is chains about my feet, time I get this far.” Her commitment to finishing her trip, for a benefit that becomes known at the end of the story, shows that she has wisdom. Later she encounters what she thinks is a man but ends up being a scare crow. At this point in the passage she admits to no longer having her senses. “My senses is gone. I too old.” This detail contributes to the idea that even though she has no senses, she still knows through gained wisdom what she is doing and why she is doing it. At the end of the story, Phoenix uses the money she has collected to purchase a toy windmill for her sick grandchild. While she is claimed to be a charity case and could use the money for something of vital importance, she decides to show the boy that even in the worst parts of life there can still be something good. “That is what come to me to do…He going to find it hard to believe there is such a thing in the world.” This kind act the woman chooses to do is because of the wisdom she has gained in her …show more content…
Knowledge is gaining information through facts based on study. While studying in school, the lessons taught may seem like a way of gaining wisdom, but it is not. Knowledge is gained through the outside world, while wisdom comes from the application of knowledge within the inner self. When one obtains wisdom, it stays forever. The way it is learned is the way it is practiced throughout the recipient’s entire life; it also will not be forgotten. Knowledge on the other hand changes over time. One may be taught a specific thing at a young age, however over time information will update itself and the same individual will be taught something else. The consistency of knowledge is insufficient and is always seeking to improve itself. The memory of knowledge also varies. Some pieces of information may last forever, but others of less importance will fade or even disappear. The last difference between the two is the application applied to each one. Knowledge is gaining correct information and using it for anything; good or bad. Wisdom is acquiring the correct information and creating beneficial use out of it. While the two contrast from each other, they are used in relation and cannot be applied without each other. A basic example explaining this is that by having knowledge, one knows that a tomato is a fruit, while wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad

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