Howard Jacobson: Life without certainties is good for your health - but don't take my word for it

I would be interested to know if cardiologists have more to do when war flares in the Middle East

Published: 29 July 2006

So what happened to uncertainty? Where did still making your mind up go, or not knowing what you believe, or, even better, not wanting to believe anything? Keats's negative capability - "That is when a man is capable of being in uncertainties, mysteries, doubts, without any irritable reaching after fact and reason."

I take "irritable" to be the surprising word there, implying that striving after certain knowledge is against our better interests, not only as poets but as men. Uncertain, we are more creative, that goes without saying. The new thought is that, uncertain, we are calmer, too. I do not, of course, offer that as a certitude. But I ask you to entertain this possibility: not knowing what we believe, owning up to doubts, trusting to what is not clear - this negative capability (which, note well, does not render us incapable) is kinder on our tempers, on our hearts, and therefore on our well-being.

Article Length: 1065 words (approx.)