<p>Prompt: Can knowledge be a burden rather than a benefit? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations. </p>
<p>Knowledge is a previous tool given to us by our ancestors and encouraged progress. However, the abuse of knowledge -or simply too much of it- can become a burden to us, as shown by Oedipus Rex and the development of viruses.
In the book Oedipus Rex, the protagonist meets his downfall because of his knowledge. In the first instance, by leaving his hometown because of a prophecy. Oedipus is really fulfilling it without his own knowledge. If he had not received this information, the entire chain of events would have been prevented. He did get the burden some prophecy, and went on to indeed, kill his father and marry his mother. Furthermore, when he already gaining knowledge about himself that are so horrifying, he must gouge his eyes out. The moment Jocasta, his mother/wife begs him not to keep looking for an answer, it is clear that knowledge is a burden to both of them, and not a benefit. The human lust for the power that comes from knowledge is shown in this book to be as dangerous as it is beneficial.
Another example of the danger knowledge can inflict is the progression of viruses that constantly attack our immune systems. When antibiotics and injections were invented, they worked perfectly, killing any germ in a person´s body. Soon afterwards, these germs (viruses and bacteria) caught on and began to develop stranger and completely new variations of themselves. New medicines followed mutations, until today, we see what are known as superviruses; viruses practically indestructible, brought forth by our own knowledge and information. This knowledge has spiraled out of control, making environmental changes that we cannot handle.
Through the examples of viruses and Oedipus, it is evident that knowledge, while a blessing, is also a curse. Its power is so great that there comes a point in which we can no longer control it, therefore making it a burden, not a benefit.</p>