Theme Of Stupidity In Siddhartha

If a person was asked to illustrate a physical representation of stupidity they may form the shape of an upside-down cone and write in it, “Dunce.” Success has often been correlated with knowledge, but, measuring how much knowledge someone possesses is tricky. In Charles Dickens Victorian novel, Great Expectations, Pip starts off as a young “common” boy who yearns for a higher station in life. Also yearning, in Herman Hesse’s Interwar novel, Siddhartha, is Siddhartha who leads a nomadic life in search of spiritual enlightenment. Although, both are self-aware and intelligent, both are quite ignorant to the world around them.
Pip is haunted by the idea that he is not worthy of wonderful opportunities (i.e. marrying Estella), therefore, he seeks …show more content…
When Siddhartha and Govinda leave their homes to join the Samanas they have to give up almost everything humans deem necessary: a sufficient amount of food, clothes, breathing. After some time with the Samanas, Siddhartha changes. Observing the city one day, he sees “whores offering themselves, physicians trying to help the sick, priests determining the most suitable day for seeding, lovers loving, mothers nursing their children-- and all of this was not worthy of one look from his eye, it all lied, it all stank, it all stank of lies…” (Hesse 11) Siddhartha is, in short, a snob. For a person who can live through other beings while meditating, he doesn’t even try to accept that these grotesque lies are truly “meaningful and joyful and beautiful.” To him, being alive in spirit is wrong. Not everyone can lead the life he does at this point in the novel. As a young boy, he has no obligations or responsibilities other than to be faithful to whatever path he chooses. The people he sees in the city have jobs, families to feed, money to make. Although his station as a religious follower, soon to be religious leader, is noble and highly-respected, he should at least acknowledge that not everything is the way he sees or wants it to …show more content…
Pip thought he knew what was best for him and Joe, regardless of being different people. Siddhartha was sure that he had all the wisdom he needed to reach the enlightenment he was looking for. Through their various endeavors they gained insight to ideas and people they thought they knew so well. Once they swallowed their pride they were able to accept those they love and the systems they were born into. Knowledge is not based on the amount a person claims to know. It is measured by how much they understand that they don’t