33 Thinking well is the greatest virtue and wisdom – to do and say what is true
‘Sophronein’, ‘thinking well’, comes up a lot in Heraclitus. It’s that Greek word which sums up what it means to live a good, balanced life. It’s not just about ‘thinking’ as we might define it; it’s about a way of living. This saying pushes the point a bit further, and makes it clear that this sort of thinking is not just something inside our heads.
Thinking well is about speaking and doing truth, which expands the idea of truth as well. Truth in this sense isn’t just about knowing that something is or isn’t the case. It’s about exercising good judgement in word and action.
Truth is always under attack, and the times in which we are living are no different. The nature of the attack has changed, though. Rumour and conspiracy theory aren’t new, it’s just that now we have more powerful ways for them to spread than there have been before. What is new, in the UK and the USA at least, is the rise of politicians who do not feel any shame about lying. Lying has always gone on, but always with the knowledge that it was wrong, and that being found out would mean resignation at the least. It is that which has changed: how much you can lie is purely a power calculation about how much you can get away with.
In such an environment – and in many parts of the world this is not a new phenomenon – speaking and doing truth can be a risky enterprise. It is also an essential part of being a fully-rounded human being, someone who can think, live, speak and act well.