November 4, 2003

  • I've been reading some 'blogs (Xanga and otherwise), and something occurred to me. It seems to me that the dominant model for culture in the US is an equation that works like this:

    Find someone who is widely recognized as smart, and someone widely recognized as stupid. Imagine that the intelligence and wisdom of these two people are numbers. Let's say smart is +2 and stupid is -2 (so the math is easy). The average would be 0.

    So you rate yourself. Let's say you make yourself a +1. This would dictate that you make yourself appear to be more stupid, so that you appear to be a 0. If you are a -1, then you make yourself appear smarter by one, even though that's not actually possible.

    Do this in all areas of your life. In areas where you are weaker than average, put on a front and don't be afraid to be incompetent. In areas where you are stronger than average, maim your soul so that you don't have to be rudely brilliant.

    And, most importantly, you must never, ever realize that the widely-recognized-as-smart people you evaluated are breaking the rules of the game.

Comments (9)

  • Interesting theory.  Now, besides the rather unadmirable trait of wanting be the all allusive "normal" there is another good reason to appear dumber than you are.  So you can surprise people.

    But you're right about trying to seem smarter than you are, it should never be done.  You only look even dumber than before.  Rather dumb people should come "out of the closet" so to speak, and declare, "I have the right to be dumb" and, "I'm dumb but I'm happy" which if it's true then I'm not really sure if they are dumb, because if you've managed to be happy, how dumb could you be?

    but I digress...

  • From A Wrinkle in Time --

    Charles Wallace about his intelligence:
    "I think it will be better if people go on thinking I’m not very bright. They won’t hate me quite so much."

  • Ah, the eternal quest for the ever illusive "normal."

  • HUH? And I would do this WHY?

  • I'm here to say 'ditto' to Femme. :)

    This just hurt my brain, Homer.

    *Goes to put ice on her brain*

    Feith

  • I get what you are saying...sort of. The mysterious quality I can't undestand might just be that you were stoned when you wrote it.

    I was a +1 but now I'm not dumbing myself down anymore. What does that make me? Zero i guess

  • Nope. Not stoned.

  • Interesting, you know I hate math but this is digestible.

  • i did this a lot in high school. mostly kept quiet because i was sick of being the only girl to raise her hand in science class. it just gets old.
    and social pressure in high school is to conform. i despise that particular little petri dish of society.

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