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Old 06-25-2008, 09:26 PM
 
Location: Happy wherever I am - Florida now
3,360 posts, read 12,231,069 times
Reputation: 3907

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You're both missing a good magazine. Slightly humorous that your 'aired' friend should dispel a world class publication on the grounds of it being too much for him.

Don't listen to him. Study and work hard. You don't need to be an intellectual to suceed, or to be happy.

Btw, forgot to mention to you that if you get on their web site most publications (magazines and newspapers) have a very low student rate for subscriptions.

Last edited by Sgoldie; 06-25-2008 at 09:49 PM.. Reason: add
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Old 06-25-2008, 10:23 PM
 
28,896 posts, read 53,969,898 times
Reputation: 46662
Quote:
Originally Posted by newyorkdoc View Post
I hate the word "Intellectual."

I have a friend who uses it to describe himself. He's currently a college student at an Ivy League school. (I myself am a college student as well at a "low ranked" school.)

He recently asked me if I still subscribe to the Economist magazine. I replied that I didn't, because I need to cut back on household spending. He then said that was a good idea because that magazine is for intellectuals and that even he wouldn't read it. I feel like he was implying I am not an intellectual therefore I shouldn't read it.

I think it's ridiculous. What makes a person intellectual? Who decides who is or who isn't? Ones self?

I find the term labeling, divisive, and sometimes even degrading to others when used in certain context.

I think a person can behave intellectually, have intellectual hobbies, ideas, or thoughts, but that a person can not be A intellectual. The term is vague and very broad.

Any thoughts or comments?
Well, truth be told, anybody who describes himself as an intellectual is not one. He's a poseur at best.
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Old 06-25-2008, 10:45 PM
 
Location: Southern California
15,083 posts, read 20,405,451 times
Reputation: 10343
Tell your 'friend' to go F himself.
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Old 06-26-2008, 04:39 AM
 
Location: Los Angeles Area
3,306 posts, read 4,135,439 times
Reputation: 592
I honestly don't get why people have such an issue with the word "intellectual". It simply refers to someone who tends to reason/think about a variety of issues. Is there a better word to describe such people?

So if you describe yourself as an intellectual, you are not really an intellectual. Implicit in this comment is that the word "intellectual" is meaningful and can be meaningfully used to describe people. So then why can't one use it to describe oneself? I don't get it.


Quote:
The term is vague and very broad.
As are many terms...

Quote:
the term is generally divisive and meant to separate people into categories.
And this is a problem because? Are we pretending that we can't put people into categories based both on their physical appearance and intellect now?
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Old 06-26-2008, 07:23 AM
 
Location: Wheaton, Illinois
10,261 posts, read 21,663,379 times
Reputation: 10453
Quote:
Originally Posted by cpg35223 View Post
Well, truth be told, anybody who describes himself as an intellectual is not one. He's a poseur at best.

Does that mean if you describe yourself as a jerk you're not one?
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Old 06-26-2008, 07:34 AM
 
2,482 posts, read 8,715,624 times
Reputation: 1972
Quote:
Originally Posted by Irishtom29 View Post
Does that mean if you describe yourself as a jerk you're not one?
People who are cool enough to admit they're a jerk certainly are more grounded than real jerks. So yes, I guess that absolves you from your jerk status if you recognize it.
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Old 06-26-2008, 07:45 AM
 
Location: Wheaton, Illinois
10,261 posts, read 21,663,379 times
Reputation: 10453
Quote:
Originally Posted by SmerkyGrl View Post
People who are cool enough to admit they're a jerk certainly are more grounded than real jerks. So yes, I guess that absolves you from your jerk status if you recognize it.

I know what you're getting at Smerky but I think it's facile. It's like people who think their nasty behavior is OK because they're being "honest".
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Old 06-26-2008, 08:59 AM
 
2,839 posts, read 9,958,403 times
Reputation: 2944
Quote:
Originally Posted by FarNorthDallas View Post
Haven't you noticed that sometimes people get so much hot air blown up their skirts in college (esp a top college) that they become quite full of themselves and arrogant. Your friend is probably just getting a big head from everyone ooh'ing and ah'ing his Ivy League status. Don't worry. Something will ultimately humble him.

Ya know, I don't think I have ever heard the word "intellectual" in normal conversation once I graduated from college. It's more like a word out of novel rather than every day vocabulary. At least in my world.

Yes. Omce the reality of life sets in, it does not matter much if you are an intellectual or not.
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Old 06-30-2008, 04:53 AM
 
Location: The Netherlands
8,568 posts, read 16,189,988 times
Reputation: 1573
I would never describe myself as an intellectual.
Then again, I wouldn't call myself ignorant either.
It also is my experience that people who call themselves intellectual regard themselves as superior to non-intellectuals.
As if intellectuals never make mistakes.
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Old 06-30-2008, 07:55 AM
 
28,896 posts, read 53,969,898 times
Reputation: 46662
Quote:
Originally Posted by Irishtom29 View Post
Does that mean if you describe yourself as a jerk you're not one?
Well, good point, but not true. Intellectual would require at least some degree of attainment and mastery. Jerk is kind of an equal-opportunity label.
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