ABSTRACT
In wisdom the disposition is a special kind of commitment of the man to life in general, whether his own or that of others. The attitude of the wise man is the commitment which is directed from out the modesty of his self-knowledge to the ethical values. It is therefore not the direction towards values in general, as goodness is, nor indeed towards the higher value; wisdom does not coincide with goodness, although it lies in the same general direction. Likewise it is an error to see its meaning in a synthesis of positive valuation factors, in an orientation of life, as it were, to the many sides of value. Even that would still be too near to intellectual insight. Socratic self-knowledge is the first fruit of this attitude. Only upon it do the more positive valuational factors rise. The attitude of the wise man towards the life and personality of others is by no means exhausted in right action.
