Intelligence is not a gift, it’s a privilege

February 20, 2007 by zeeliciouszee.

I’ve been requisitioned to hold a discussion concerning why no one likes smart people, but everyone wants to be one. I’ve decided that the Spider-man 2 quote would make for an appropriate title. *This is an interesting point in and of itself that I’d actually like to refer to again later*

“everyone wants to be smart. no one wakes up wanting to be average. everyone wants to stand out or prove themselves in some way. however, if you stare at someone doing it. standing out. being better. you want to be that person, and that person shows you what u can be but you aren’t. so how can you like that? the flaunting image of what you are not but of what you want to achieve?”
-From the desk of L

Fact: It is always possible for people to be better than what they are now. Better can be measured in an indefinite number of ways, but here are a few examples: appearances, personality, wealth, cleansliness, talent, and intelligence (You love the five axes references, get over it). Try to argue with me. Good, we’ve established that no one is perfect.

Fact: People WANT to be better than what they are now. Again, we all dream of the day that our complexions will miraculously lighten and we can walk the Earth as if we were gods and goddesses. What’s missing? There’s room for improvement, and we want it. Why don’t we have it?

Given our example, the subject is incapable of being better than he or she is. The subject was actually given to me as a hypotherical situation and doesn’t pertain to anyone in particular, but I have yet to meet anyone that it isn’t applicable to. The feeling the subject experiences is what we might call “jealousy” - the desire for that which we do not or cannot have. Often, like many emotions we feel, it can lead towards bitterness or hatred. Hopefully, this is all still given and I’m not moving too fast. I’d hate to have to explain how emotions work because, quite frankly, I have no idea.

I think this is where the debate really starts. How is it possible to want to be something you hate? I suppose I could try to explain that being jealous of someone is slightly different from strictly disliking someone. That really doesn’t accomplish what I’ve set out to do here. Actually, I think I just totally changed the direction of where I was going here. Looking back at the discussion, it looks like I need to try to disect the paradox of jealousy. Great. This won’t be hard. Thinkthinkthink…

We’re selfish. Sorry, that’s the best I have right now. Humans are selfish jerks. We want more for ourselves and less for everyone else. Example: I really wanted to give a good example for this, but nothing outlandishly inspirational or outrageously funny comes to me. BUT I’m sure you are all aware that when your neighbor wins the lottery and you go over to congratulate him or her, you’d much rather punch him or her and take the lotto ticket. We want good things to happen to us, even at the expense of others, and especially if we don’t know them. I make no claim at being a psych major, so I’m going to leave it right there. However, I can discuss ways of overcoming it. I offer four solutions…

One: Wait. Cheesy: Time heals all suffering. In a couple years, it won’t be that big of a deal. Unless of course it is, in which case you move to one of the next two solutions.

Two: Get the thing that you’re jealous of the person having. Maybe even 1-up them. You’re friend just got all 5 seasons of 24? Go buy Extreme Makeover Home Edition. [Boo!!! I know, that was a terrible joke. I don’t actually watch either show, but I saw a great opportunity to get in a few easy burns. Sorry.]

Three: Inflict pain. The above won’t work in the lottery example, so let’s just go with that thought we had back when we were congratulating them. Pain doesn’t necessarily have to be physical, it can be mental too. I recall a strip from Calvin and Hobbes where Calvin’s having a bad day and takes it out on that annoying smart girl that’s always bugging him. It ends with the line “Nothing helps a bad mood like spreading it around.” So when your friend is the first kid on the block to get an iPhone, drop a piano on him. It’ll make you feel better.

Four: SUPER CHEESY. I’m almost embarassed to say this one. That’s a lie. I’m VERY embarassed to say this one. Okay, I’m going to suck it up. Let me get a drink first… And this is it… It’s coming up… Right here… It’ll be here soon… You’ll see… Really soon… It’s… urghhhh… can’t breathe… dying… call… ambulance… … … F it. Learn to love the person. Waitwaitwait, explanation before you crack on me. When someone asks you what “love” is (and I don’t mean the super sappy romantic love) what’s the definition you come up with? For me, I define loving someone as caring more for or equally for their well-being in comparison to your own. I’d go into more depth, but that’s another story for another time. Anyway, if you use my definition, is it even possible to be jealous of them? We can talk more about this later.

—

At first, I wanted to respond to this with “the grass is greener on the other side,” but that doesn’t answer the question at hand. For the sake of not deleting an interesting thought (and not ending with that last bit), I’ll digress: Smart people don’t like to deal with the (please forgive me here) “responsibilities” that being smart entails. I’m told there are pressures to maintain the smart image once you’ve obtained it (I say “I’m told” because I wouldn’t actually know, don’t ask). As for people wanting to be smarter, I think we already did that.

For further insight, I’m going to recommend reading Daniel Keyes’ “Flowers for Algernon.” Coincidentally, I finished it just a few weeks before this discussion was brought to me. For anyone that hasn’t read it, it’s the story of a mentally challenged man in his 30s who’s given the opportunity to undergo a surgery that will increase his intelligence. That’s an understatement. It makes him a genius. I believe he learns somewhere in the ballpark of 25 languages, living and dead, in the course of a couple of months. Of course, there are consequences to this. He quickly discovers the faults of society and becomes extremely critical of others. Go read it. Seriously.

And this brings me back to the first paragraph where I said there was something interesting in the title. Originally, I wanted to make a reference to “Flowers for Algernon.” I opted against this in fear of not appealing to the majority of my reader base and went with the more popular Spider-man quote. Why did I choose to downplay my literary knowledge? I’d rather try to fit in than to flaunt how well cultured I am. Can you believe that? Trying to be with the majority in my own domain. Where do I get off giving up intellectuality for acceptance? Some people would kill for intelligence. Well guess what, some people would for acceptance, too. Thinking yet? Good. Before I end this post I’d just like to give my thanks to L for inspiring me to write this one. I hope it was along the lines of what you were looking for. To anyone else with topics they want to see discussed, please don’t be afraid to bring them up. The floor’s completely open.

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