Intellectual (universities, school, students, good)

[newyorkdoc]

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?

[akck]

Why is he a friend? Sounds like a pompus a$$ to me. I think most people who claim to be intellectual do so to make themselves feel superior. While they may things in one area, they likely lack in many others.

Probably the most intellectual people would never call themselves so. This is because they likely feel they are always learning and how could someone be an intellectual when there's so much out there that they don't know yet.

[truckzter]

Good point!

I don't like the term myself (I automatically envision T.S. Eliot in a wingback chair smoking a pipe. ), and, thankfully, none of my profs have used it. And it's not a term I hear from colleagues or in the English faculty halls.

In the English Lit field, I joke around about Literature intellectuals being nothing more than the Literati (my own fun play on the secret society group "Illuminati") ... really, F.R. Levis, T.S. Eliot, and all other critics and High Modernists ruled the world (or wanted/want to anyway).

And, no, I do not subscribe to The Economist. I don't think I've ever read it, either. Right now I'm reading a biography about Cary Grant which I am really enjoying. Heaven forbid as it is probably not intellectual enough.

I think intellectual is just a term for people who want to be part of the intellectual club. No one is given a badge or certificate that says, "Congratulations, you are now an intellectual!" Maybe your friend the Ivy Leaguer is allowed to call him/herself an intellectual because of the status. (I admit, there is a romantic aesthetic pushed by movies/newspapers/etc. associated with attending an Ivy League .. and sometimes I wish I could have attended one, but then I think about the reported competition between students and the elitism; I don't think I would have been very happy at an Ivy.)

But I think you are right: the term is generally divisive and meant to separate people into categories. But really, do people walk around at parties saying, "How do you do? My name is Cary Grant, intellectual"? Or is intellectual defined by one's job or company?

Talking about Ivies: I found out there is such a place as a "Public Ivy": a public univ. with such rankings as an Ivy ... not sure if such universities are trying to pose ...

Maybe someone out in the WWW world knows about this intellectual business ...

[charolastra00]

Honestly, I see no problem with the term. I consider people intellectual when they take the time to read, stay informed, and understand issues around them. It's pure laziness that separates the intellectuals from the non-intellectuals so I have no problem using the term! I read the Economist, but I don't think that changes my "intellectualness" from someone who reads National Geographic, academic journals, or even just a balanced variety of news sources. The point is to continue to increase your knowledge of the past, present, and future... that is the true mark of an intellectual.

And just because I might *occasionally* watch Grey's Anatomy doesn't mean that negates my intellectualness.

Not everyone has that type of definition, however.

[Prinny]

There really isn't anything wrong w/ someone who is aware of being an intellect, it's wrong when they decide they're an intellect and you're not.

What akck said. I think most people who claim to be intellectual do so to make themselves feel superior. While they may things in one area, they likely lack in many others.

[Beretta]

To call oneself intellectual demonstrates that, clearly, they are not. To comment that another person is intellectual is a compliment, in my humble opinion.

[Tek_Freek]

If you tell me you are an intellectual I know you are not, because if you truly were an intellectual you would be intelligent enough to know the definition of the term, and humble enough to avoid using it as a description for yourself.

[Irishtom29]

Originally Posted by Tek_Freek

If you tell me you are an intellectual I know you are not, because if you truly were an intellectual you would be intelligent enough to know the definition of the term, and humble enough to avoid using it as a description for yourself.

Ahh, a version of the Goebbels Twist; nobody is what they say they are or does anything for the reasons they say.

So we know there are intellectuals out there but no one is supposed to describe themselves as one?

[Clay Lady]

newyorkdoc, your "friend" is on some sort of an ego high and his words aren't worth another moments consideration. The fact that you are attending college is a sign you are interested in learning. There is more to being intelligent than what the school you are attending can teach you. You have made a very good observation.

That said - I recently described myself as an "artsy intellectual" (making use of someone elses words) and I kind of like the term! I am an artist, I like information/thinking/figuring things out, and well, I am not humble either. We can each call ourselves whatever we like. Some will agree and some won't. Breathe in and breathe out and smile.

[FarNorthDallas]

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.