Ridiculous Sign of the Month
'Become an intellectual for under $20.'
--a sign hanging over a table at Joseph Beth Bookstore. The table contained, among other titles, Dan Brown's potboiler Angels & Demons. Beside the fact that such a book hardly belongs in any such discussion, we take issue with the whole idea that reading any book can make someone an intellectual. Processing the world through one's head, our definition of an intellectual (and one that leaves the door just as wide open to truck drivers as college professors) is really an in-born trait, not something you can acquire through any recommended reading list. But enough about what we think. What do you think about what we think?
18 Comments:
Huked Onn Fonics Wurked 4 Mi.
or
"Intellectualism for Dummies" (TM)
Those make just about as much sense.
Man, you're quick, Art. You posted this response within about 10 seconds of my hitting the publish button. From now on, your nickname is Quick Draw McArt. Okay, we'll work on something a little catchier. Or perhaps other readers can contribute possible nicknames that trip off the tongue more easily.
Wait, you mean when I finish one of those fancy pants Amazon customer lists I won't be an intellectual? Being able to identify patterns, trends, and deeply understand a subject isn't the same checking off titles from said list?
I resist being called an intellectual. I think my objection is not that it is not accurate – I’m clearly a deep thinker – it’s the connotations. It’s okay to be clever. It’s not okay to think you’re something because you’re clever. When I start to list of all the things I can’t do or don’t know anything about that keeps me from thinking I’m more than what I am. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not sorry I’m intelligent but intelligence is a poor substitute for life’s more important things.
I think the sign was meant to be funny.
Jason, I think you already qualify, and it's good to see your name here again. Hope you're doing well. Jim, point taken. That last sentence of yours especially is a powerful thought to consider. And James, I never considered that possibility, but perhaps you're right. Thanks everyone for adding your two cents.
"Processing the world through one's head, our definition of an intellectual" - sounds like a good one.
I was prompted to look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual. I see our old buddy Richard Dawkins mentioned there.
The usual comeback to self-styled intellectuals is "if you're so smart, why aren't you rich?" I was listening to a BBC interview with Bill Gates this morning. That sure wouldn't work on him.
That made me laugh. Of course, since Gates is busily giving his money away, maybe his status will change.
I must say, I do have to admire Gates for, having gathered so much money, giving so much of it away. Of course, his wife is wonderful influence on that, too.
But Steve Jobs and Bill Gates in specific, and Silicon Valley in general, give the lie to the whole "if you're so smart, why aren't you rich" line. The triumph of the geeks.
I thought intellectuals were bad. That is what Joe the Plumber said, anyway.
I didn't see any candidate using the words of 'Bertrand The Intellectual' as a cudgel during the Presidential debate, so that must be right.
Gates' dad also deserves a lot of credit for influencing him to begin giving it away earlier in life (he was originally planning on waiting until he was much older before he got serious about philanthropy). Also his buddy and bridge partner, Warren Buffet. Christine, there's a looooong string of anti-intellectualism in America, and it's just as strong today as it's ever been. All part of our democratic disdain for elites of all types. Much of it is rather juvenile, I think.
"An intellectual is a man who takes more words than necessary to tell more than he knows" ;)
Then if we take that into consideration, anyone can be one for under $20!
just joking..
Ah, there's a good example of how the underlying cultural bias against intellectualism has worked its way into a joke.
Picking out what one considers to be an admirable intellect is as varied as there are subjects about which one can be intelligent. The intelligence of the mathematician is different from that of the athlete or the musician or the poet.
I think the brain is capable of expanding and changing. People who analyzed Da Vinci came up with 7 principles for improving intellect that can be developed and applied. They are:
Curiosità - An insatiably curious approach to life and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning.
Dimostrazion - A commitment to test knowledge through experience, persistence, and a willingness to learn from mistakes.
Sensazion - The continual refinement of the sense, especailly sight, as the means to enliven experince.
Sfumato (literally "Going up in Smoke") - A willingness to embrace ambiguity, paradox and uncertainty.
Arte/Scienza - The development of the balance between science and art, logic and imagination. "Whole-brain" thinking.
Corporalita - The cultivation of grace, ambidexterity, fitness, and poise.
Connessione - A recognition of and appreciation for the interconnectedness of all things and phenomena. Systems thinking. (from How To Think Like Lenardo Da Vinci by Michael J. Gelb
Very nice. Thanks for adding this, Kass. It reminded me of some remarkable work that Harvard's Howard Gardner is doing and has done on so-called multiple intelligences. It resonates with me.
Michael Gelb, "How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci." Glad you brought that up, Kass. Greta book, and great truths in it. Leonardo was one of those multi-phasic artists I take as one of my own mentors: someone who did several things well, thereby disproving the conventional clichés about artists only being able to do one thing well.
Not a bad mentor to have. If only you could have had direct contact with him...
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