Wisdom

The dream of a Liberal (arts) education—which is the scaled, democratic form of the Keatsian ideal of negative capability—cannot hold up when liberalism itself is held to be suspect.

Tell a wise person or else keep silent

for those who do not understand

will mock it right away.

A simpler, more elegant definition, still compatible with Grossmann’s, comes from Tom Morgan of LE:

“Know what to do, and when.”

I love parsimonious definitions, which is why I favour Tom’s over the academic ones.

Wisdom refers to the slow accumulation of personal values that work well for people living in different kinds of ways.