Ignorance: A History of the Phenomenon from a Global Perspective

Section: Psychology

Number of pages: 400 pages

Ignorance... The Arabs described the period before the advent of Islam as the Age of “Islamic Ignorance,” and humanists called the Middle Ages the “Dark Ages.” In the Age of Enlightenment, ignorance was seen as the foundation of tyrannical regimes, fanaticism, and superstition, which rational people hoped would be eliminated by the advent of an era of reason and knowledge. Today, modern states seek to eliminate the “monster” of ignorance, in a world teeming with information and closely connected to their renewed horizons.

What about the knowledge that has been lost over time? Are we really less ignorant today than our ancestors? The book presents a history of the phenomenon of ignorance that has accompanied humanity in various fields such as religion, science, politics, wars, business, and natural disasters. It reviews many historical examples that shed light on the different types of ignorance, whether intentional or unintentional, conscious or unconscious; leading to an in-depth aljahl investigation of human knowledge throughout the ages, and identifying its limits