“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it”

This quote from Aristotle tells us that a truly educated mind is one that can think about and understand a thought or point of view without accepting it. It is a mind that can understand an argument as it is even if it doesn’t agree with it.

This doesn’t seem like that difficult a thing to do. Don’t most people do this? Not really. Every understand that there are certain points of views, and what those point of views generally say about a certain topic, even if they don’t agree.

But for many people, it is difficult to truly understand an opinion that they disagree with as it is, without the implicit simplification of the thought. Most people when they describe an opinion that they don’t agree with or understand, do so in a very reductive way.

Many people, by nature of the idea being foreign to them, are unable to grasp the idea as it truly is. Put another way, if you took an idea that is foreign to you or you disagreed with, and were told to describe what it is as if you agreed with it, could you do it? Most people could not.

For the very reason that they disagree with it, it is difficult to make a sound, strong argument or description of a point of view different from their own. What does this mean? It means that people should strive to have a better understanding of views that don’t naturally agree with them.

People should work to understand different ideas in a deeper sense. That includes those of us who have an easier time entertaining and explaining ideas that we don’t necessarily agree with.

If you want to have a well rounded and deep understanding of the world, or want to bridge the gap between you and someone else, being able to entertain a thought without accepting it is something you should work to improve in.