proverb · Legacy record
The fool is obstinate and doubts not, knowing all but his own ignorance.
The fool is obstinate and doubts not, knowing all but his own ignorance.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
An obstinate fool certain of everything except their own ignorance criticises confidence that cannot recognise its limits. The saying values a willingness to question oneself.
What the words are saying
A critical reading does not make a person permanently inferior or equate every firm conviction with ignorance. A useful application examines whether evidence can change a position and whether uncertainty is acknowledged. Doubt can guide inquiry without requiring endless indecision or self-contempt.
Everyday example
Someone identifies what evidence could change their view instead of treating disagreement as automatically wrong.
When to use it
Use it to discuss revisable judgment without fixed intelligence labels.
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What it does not mean
No permanent ignorance or unreliability from conviction alone is established.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
Egypt
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin.- Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided wisdom reference (2014 AD)
Supplied reference B; unit 596; PDF page 55; collection label: Egypt
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- Egypt