Thread: The Dangers of Intelligence

Maybe my brain does not work on the same level of others. Maybe I fail to recognise the point that is being made. Maybe I am ignorant.

Whatever the case it seems to me that people are posting more and more intelligent posts about fascinating topics that will cause endless debate and will for many years to come. God, religon, our existence, philosophy. I sit here and read complicated essays almost weekly offering yet another viewpoint to something else and that's what has pushed me to write this.

Some writers believe that because they write something it must be the truth. Some writers are eager to share their intelligence with us, have us admire them. Some are trying to propose points or ideas to us, ideas which they deem crucial and are of such complexity they require our undivided attention to understand them. In dealing with complicated ideas on the edge of our understanding it is natural that such long words and lengthy explanations have to be used but if the writers really want to communicate their ideas it would be best not to lose themselves in the intelligent worlds these ideas exist in, bring them back to us here on earth so we can understand them and comment on them.

I can understand how it may be hard to render such difficult things as Aristotle's teachings or quantum physics (to choose two totally random examples) into understandable langauge but things like examples, space breaks, even the occasional joke to compliment your intelligent essay would make it much more readable in my opinion. If you believe you have something intelligent to share naturally you would want to share it with the maximum number of people and do that it should be understadable to people who are not as clever as you.
Remember you are condenscending to offer a pearl of wisdom to total strangers, if you're doing that you should at least make sure the strangers will be able to understand it enough to take in what you're trying to say.

Feel free to let me know if you agree with what I'm saying or whether (with the greatest respect and politeness) I should keep my opinions to myself.

I agree with almost all of this. What good is philosophical/scientific discourse if it turns its back on 95% of humanity? This elitism only serves those who are initiated, and more often than not exploits those who are left in the dark.

Then again, some things just can't possibly be expressed without using big words and esoteric data, as you said. The point is to make sure this knowledge is available to all and to keep our egos no bigger than our heads. And I think examples and jokes would help a lot. Also, these so called elite intelligences should start directing some of their attention towards explaining why their subject matter is important to "the masses," and find out how to motivate them to learn.

I've never been a fan of sophism or pedantry myself, but sometimes flowery language is necesary to achieve the desired connotation.

Did I just make a fool of myself?

I completely agree. As a person who knows nothing about psychology, I find it extremely frustrating to have to look up explantions within explantions. I want to learn, perhaps the author of whatever it is I'm reading would enable me to by using understandable language along with explantions for nessecary language of the discipline.

Oh yes. So true. All of it, really. I once posted on a philosophy forum, presenting a simple idea I came up with. I didn't look anything up or try to tie my idea into any other pre-established ideas, but a lot of the responses were riddled with allusions to other philosphers ideas and all this 'all-knowing' mentality. I guess I was stepping into their (they being the philosphy-enthusiasts) realm, but referring to my genuine thoughts and words, that were completely un-influenced by other philosophical knowledge, as 'poor versions' of such-and-such's statement is just condesending! If the self-proclaimed intellectuals wish to teach the rest of the world anything, they must first learn to talk to them first.

I agree, I think people come across as more intelligent if they have a greater ability to explain things with simple language. My father is the most intelligent man I have met in my entire life and this intelligence is integral to the profession he is in. He has an innate ability to explain the most complex matters, which are needlessly complex by design, using simple everyday language you or I would use in the pub.

Having the ability to express ourselves in the most basic language that is possible - is not that a skill? And how do we learn the capacity to put a thought into simple wording? I think that instructions are detailed mechanisms looking to press out thoughts like widgets on assembly belt. I wish that I could subscribe to the rules of simplistic views. But there is a more complex 'character' wanting and waiting in my intellectual spirit. Because that's what he dares to do, so I invite him along! Why do I? He is good at reducing me downward and into better fields of communicating. Should I repress him for his teachings? ....but you all agreed that i should!

i can't stand the egomaniacal penchant of so many, to indulge in jargon... most examples of which are totally incomprehensible, due to a deficit of proper grammar, in addition to the mind-numbing plethora of bombastic buzzwords...

ok... yeah, that was a tongue-in-cheek reverse 'homage' to that kind of merde... sorry, couldn't help myself!...

but, yes, i hate that kind of stuff... it's only a pitiful conceit of those who can't write well with any kind of vocabulary... someone once put it perfectly, as coming across like, 'an explosion in a word factory'...

I agree. In plain English: I hate that stuff.

What? There are people who are not thrilled by learning that some social misfit knows a bunch of big words? Let me put it this way: some of the most-honest-to-God _dumb_ people I know are members of Mensa. As the editors of Marvel comics love to say, "'Nuff said!"
-- jeang287

Nice cat. There is something more that I don't like which is when people over use Google to make a point, a kind of "proof-by-Google". I have nothing against people using it, but it is especially annoying when they are condescending with it. When I was at Uni if I had sourced an entire essay only using Google I would have been eaten alive.

Dear Cipher2; Glad you like my red-haired friend. As to sourcing by Google, ack! I am amazed that anyone would try it, and doubly astounded if they get away with it in a so-called "institution of higher learning." Or anywhere else, for example. Google is NOT cast in stone, nor is it written by gurus. It is one step above Wikipedia -- the latter is helpful, but not infallible. Sometimes one has to do one's _own_ homework...sigh.
-- jeang287

i can't stand the egomaniacal penchant of so many, to indulge in jargon... most examples of which are totally incomprehensible, due to a deficit of proper grammar, in addition to the mind-numbing plethora of bombastic buzzwords...

ok... yeah, that was a tongue-in-cheek reverse 'homage' to that kind of merde... sorry, couldn't help myself!...

but, yes, i hate that kind of stuff... it's only a pitiful conceit of those who can't write well with any kind of vocabulary... someone once put it perfectly, as coming across like, 'an explosion in a word factory'...

Whatever, You might try writing non-fiction by using coherent wording with good style.
But don't hate a fake, that's inner war.... get a job in fast food resturaunt so you know how to critique something! And behavior AINT the person at all. I attended a good women's unsiveristy....actually...they pulled better punches than I did above here (#7)!

The forum master with true emotions....great stuff! Good Bye. lol

Originally Posted by Will-11

Maybe my brain does not work on the same level of others. Maybe I fail to recognise the point that is being made. Maybe I am ignorant.

Whatever the case it seems to me that people are posting more and more intelligent posts about fascinating topics that will cause endless debate and will for many years to come. God, religon, our existence, philosophy. I sit here and read complicated essays almost weekly offering yet another viewpoint to something else and that's what has pushed me to write this.

Some writers believe that because they write something it must be the truth. Some writers are eager to share their intelligence with us, have us admire them. Some are trying to propose points or ideas to us, ideas which they deem crucial and are of such complexity they require our undivided attention to understand them. In dealing with complicated ideas on the edge of our understanding it is natural that such long words and lengthy explanations have to be used but if the writers really want to communicate their ideas it would be best not to lose themselves in the intelligent worlds these ideas exist in, bring them back to us here on earth so we can understand them and comment on them.

I can understand how it may be hard to render such difficult things as Aristotle's teachings or quantum physics (to choose two totally random examples) into understandable langauge but things like examples, space breaks, even the occasional joke to compliment your intelligent essay would make it much more readable in my opinion. If you believe you have something intelligent to share naturally you would want to share it with the maximum number of people and do that it should be understadable to people who are not as clever as you.
Remember you are condenscending to offer a pearl of wisdom to total strangers, if you're doing that you should at least make sure the strangers will be able to understand it enough to take in what you're trying to say.

Feel free to let me know if you agree with what I'm saying or whether (with the greatest respect and politeness) I should keep my opinions to myself.

I feel, that the answer to this as always, lies somewhere in the middle.
People instinctively know when someone is using language as a way to prop themselves above others. Most human interaction is non-verbal, and this kind of conduct is very transparant to most.

The thing is -I LOVE big words. If a Man pops out a 5 syllable word Im immediately attracted to him, haha..a Woman as well.

I use big words in my writing because they pop in my head so I put them to paper, that simple. I consider it as being true to myself as a writer.

I think what you mean is people who use vocabulary and language as a tool to impess others. This is manipulation and not to be confused with a pure-hearted writer who simply loves words and uses them accordingly I think.

I agree with FW. The answer is in the middle.

It is irritating when people show off so much that you are unable to even understand what they are saying. However, there need to words we don't understand, concepts we don't grasp so that we are challenged and intrigued to broaden our literary horizons. Still, sometimes it is nice to hear simple things. Sometimes the words are too beatiful, and they block what you are trying to express to the reader.

Well Done.