Explaining Albert Knox's Statment

By growing up we start to get use to and have a basic understanding of our surroundings. We are unable to care further more for everyday cycles that we come across and lack of imagination that drives us to wonder through the process. As Albert Knox states “to be one of those people who take the world for granted” meaning that knowing through the process, it has begin turning into a habit in which many don’t realize. Therefore I agree with Albert’s statement “it seems as if the process of growing up, we lose the ability to wonder about the world’.

The ‘flying incident’ with mom, dad and little Thomas in the kitchen shows a good example of the meaning to wonder. Little Thomas’s curiosity is still floating around and is unable to judge what is possible or not since he has not experienced it before. Mom could never have imagined dad flying in the air therefore she would act shocked because she is able to judge the whole situation from her everyday cycle. Children are curious and adults are not anymore because their understanding has taken control of their lives already so they feel that there is no need to wonder any further. Another good example would be the ‘white rabbit’. Albert clearly separates normal beings from philosophers in this quote “They crawl deep into the rabbit’s fur, snuggle down comfortably, and stay there for the rest of their lives.” This shows that the ability to wonder is slowly faded as we grow older into life. However philosophers are able to do so to wonder as they stay at the very tip of the fur where their minds encourage them to explore all possibilities of our surrounding. Philosophers and children are compared closely together as both are able to still be curious about life. This brings out a point that Albert says “To children. The world and everything in it is new, something that gives rise to astonishment.” This is how philosopher still thinks of the world as it is, staying at a very consistent level, never lacking of imagination. This is true because many of us are not philosopher anymore since we all went down the same path and have experienced life as it is and take the world for granted through the process.

In conclusion, I think that growing through the process of life and lose the ability to wonder is accurate. The natural process of growing up has nothing wrong except that we just get use to our routines or everyday cycle that we have developed. We question less
because we understand more and have a structure in life that guides us. Our knowledge never decreases, it is that matter of learning and experiencing something and taking it back to exploring it even further.