PART 1: 2016

          In this allusion I think that Byron is not saying knowledge should be considered dangerous, but that it can only be achieved through loss, pain, or suffering. He explains that grief is the instructor of the wise because those who have gone through pain have learned lessons and gone through different experiences; that is where the wise would receive their knowledge from. Those who see the Tree of Life as happiness and joy may believe that it has the same concept as the Tree of Knowledge, but the wise would know “the fatal truth” because of the grief they have gone through. When people have not gone through pain they may make their basic and important life decisions based on what mainly concerns their well-being and feelings. While the wise would make their life decisions considering others too because from their grief and lessons they would know what it is like to be in pain. Byron’s connection of having knowledge to being wise is that in order to use your knowledge for good you have to learn your lessons and have experience; that can only be received through pain, loss and suffering. Those who use their knowledge for bad have not gone through pain; therefore they would not be wise enough to understand someone else’s pain. By not caring about others’ feelings the “foolish” would be giving pain to others; those other people would learn their lesson from the pain the “foolish” have given them and therefore achieve knowledge. The wise would not be able to achieve the Tree of Knowledge without those who are not wise; the pain they receive would help them make decisions different than the “foolish”. 

PART 2: 2017

But grief should be the instructor of the wise;        
Sorrow is knowledge: they who know the most
Must mourn the deepest o’er the fatal truth,
The Tree of Knowledge is not that of Life.

-Byron 

I first read this text when I was applying to AP Capstone as a sophomore; the English part of the application required us to analyze and answer a prompt. I didn't have the prompt, but I did have my answer to it saved. After reading my answer, I believe the prompt was along the lines of “Do you think knowledge can be dangerous?” and “Why would someone think the tree of knowledge and the tree of life are the same thing? Do you think it is the same?” This text comes from a play called Manfred by Lord Byron. At the time I thought these four lines were a poem, but after recently researching it I learned it was from a play and was spoken by the character Manfred. I originally thought it was a poem because it seemed as if the writer was expressing his thoughts on a concept about life, but now that I think about it these four lines make it appear as if Byron built Manfred into a strong character since he was able to convey a lesson that people today could actually relate to. 

Because I have written about this prompt before, I literally have something that can show my double perspective. After reading what I wrote sophomore year, I do still agree with some of the things I wrote, but many of them I have been able to understand on a deeper level. When Byron says that “grief is the instructor of the wise” I believed he said that, because in order to understand the pain of others and have that wisdom you first have to experience it and for that, there would be no better teacher than grief. I still agree with that today, but to a certain extent. I do agree with the belief that pain can make one wise and give them lessons and experience in life, but that is not always the case. Previously I thought grief was the only way one could become wise, but while it may be one of the few effective ways to gain wisdom it can sometimes go in the opposite direction. All those who go through grief do not end up becoming wise. Some people may channel the anger they have from going through the pain onto someone else as a way to release it. So while grief can lead to knowledge and wisdom, depending on the person it can also lead to violence and grudges. 

I personally think that the Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life are two different concepts, because the Tree of Life focuses on joy and happiness, but the Tree of Knowledge is often achieved by experiencing the complete opposite. I believe I had unconsciously been aware of this interpretation of these two concepts because I knew that going through pain or making a mistake does teach you something and make you wiser going forward, but I did not consciously address it at a deeper level. After reading this text I began to surprisingly have a slight appreciation towards the concept of being able to gain wisdom out of something that, in the moment, can seem as the worst thing ever. The way I view it, if it is unavoidable to make mistakes and suffer, you might as well take away something from it. 

I believe it is important to note that Byron says “grief should be the instructor of the wise”. Through the concepts of the tree of knowledge and the tree of life and also this line, Byron expresses grief as if it is the only way one can understand pain and feel empathy for others. Unlike when I was a sophomore, today I have a different view of this. When I was a sophomore, the idea of there potentially being another way to become wise, besides through mistakes and experiences, was not even in my head; I just understood grief was an effective way. Today I believe if I have not gone through an experience that someone else has, I should at the very least try putting myself in their shoes before jumping to conclusions. If I had a situation I would hope that if someone else had not developed the perspective to vividly understand it since they had not gone through a similar experience, that at the very least they would try to put themselves in my shoes before making any judgements. I would not only want to put myself in someone else's shoes because I would want them to do the same for me. I would also want to do it because I would have the chance of understanding that person’s perspective without going through the ups and downs of their experience. That may in a way come off as greedy, but if it means that I can use that secondary perspective to understand another person’s pain then why not; in the end it may seem as if you are experiencing an event and learning from it without actually having to go through it. 

As seen in the response I wrote as a sophomore, this is a concept that I had not thought of until later on. In a way my response is the same because I would still be using grief as a way to become wiser, but just secondary. The view that I have regarding the relationship between grief and wisdom, I would not say changed, but instead became deeper and expanded. As I grow older and get more experience I most likely will expand even more. 

This text makes me feel safe because it reminds me that from the little mistakes we make as kids to the severe problems we encounter as we grow older, in the end you do get something out of it, even though in the moment that is the last thing you are thinking about. It also reminds me of the value of growing mentally. The experience you go through may hurt and could perhaps even damage your life severely, but you grew mentally and who knows, maybe even got a perspective that many people have difficulty understanding even if they try their best to sympathize. Even if it may only seem as if it affected you just mentally, what you feel mentally does affect your actions and who you become as a person.