In Praise of Ignorance
Anyone who has read In Praise of Idleness by Bertrand Russell, would instantly know that my title is not an original idea (but how many of my titles are my own, anyway?). I read that book about 15 years ago or so, during a phase when I was still trying (or at least, be able to pretend) to be an intellectual. I would quote big guys, and throw their names here and there. It would take me years and the meeting a particular person, whose words would make me realize that most of us who proclaim our love of philosophy actually do so only because philosophy allows us to satisfy our ego by letting all of us think that the view of each of us is equally correct!
It will take me another decade, and the association with a Dutch person (who by then had alreaqdy made a French, card-carrying intellectual read other stuff) that would tell me that I'm as far as from being an intellectual as I 'm from being Rockefeller. He would lend me non-intellectual books to read, and I would slowly deintellectualize myself, and finally one day I would look at my eyes and tell mydself without fear that I was not an intellectual.
However, in spite of that, I already got into the habit of picking up unnecessary, useless information over the years. I continue to do so, and that's what makes me the loser that I'm. Let me explain in it the following paragraphs.
The other day, I went to a dinner party. I won't go into the details. But all I will say is that, when you arrive there, they paste a paper with a person's name on your back, and you need to ask them questions and based on their answers, you should tell them who that person is.
I was in a good mood. It was a saturday evening; there was enough wine for all of us. And so I wanted to play around. I asked them if there was any limit on the number of questions that I could ask. They said, "No", but some of their faces failed to hide the fact that they already felt that I was a jerk. I then made another wrong move; I tried to make a joke by asking "Is he or she a male?" They laughed like hell, and repeated this phrase to one another.
(About a decade ago, when I newly arrived at a University campus, I was the odd man out to many of the local guys. Within a few weeks, I had to attend a cultural evening. After a performance of a mime skit there, the guy sitting next to me, a man with reasonable amount of all-knowing air turned to me and asked, "Hey, how did you like the skit?" I remembered Anrie, who said "If you need to lie, look straight into your victim's eyes", and so I looked into his eyes, maintained a dull face and replied, "It must be good; but, sorry, I don't understand Tamil". My answer made him go ballistic; he immediately repeated my answer to all his friends, turned to me and shouted, "What is this, you stupid fellow? This is mime; there is no dialogue!" Of course, I maintained my look and repeated, "But I don't understand Tamil!")
They told me that this was a famous person, about whom a movie was recently made. I guessed it must be Truman Capote and answered accordingly. They burst out into laughter, and one of the all-knowing wise guys asked me why I made up a name. I tried to reason it out with him, and then another all-knowing guy commented that he never heard this name. I mentioned, Breakfast at Tiffany's and In Cold Blood and the point that he was Dill in To Kill a Mockingbird; but going by their expressions, I was sure that I was the wrong man at the wrong place.
However, in spite of that, I already got into the habit of picking up unnecessary, useless information over the years. I continue to do so, and that's what makes me the loser that I'm. Let me explain in it the following paragraphs.
The other day, I went to a dinner party. I won't go into the details. But all I will say is that, when you arrive there, they paste a paper with a person's name on your back, and you need to ask them questions and based on their answers, you should tell them who that person is.
I was in a good mood. It was a saturday evening; there was enough wine for all of us. And so I wanted to play around. I asked them if there was any limit on the number of questions that I could ask. They said, "No", but some of their faces failed to hide the fact that they already felt that I was a jerk. I then made another wrong move; I tried to make a joke by asking "Is he or she a male?" They laughed like hell, and repeated this phrase to one another.
(About a decade ago, when I newly arrived at a University campus, I was the odd man out to many of the local guys. Within a few weeks, I had to attend a cultural evening. After a performance of a mime skit there, the guy sitting next to me, a man with reasonable amount of all-knowing air turned to me and asked, "Hey, how did you like the skit?" I remembered Anrie, who said "If you need to lie, look straight into your victim's eyes", and so I looked into his eyes, maintained a dull face and replied, "It must be good; but, sorry, I don't understand Tamil". My answer made him go ballistic; he immediately repeated my answer to all his friends, turned to me and shouted, "What is this, you stupid fellow? This is mime; there is no dialogue!" Of course, I maintained my look and repeated, "But I don't understand Tamil!")
They told me that this was a famous person, about whom a movie was recently made. I guessed it must be Truman Capote and answered accordingly. They burst out into laughter, and one of the all-knowing wise guys asked me why I made up a name. I tried to reason it out with him, and then another all-knowing guy commented that he never heard this name. I mentioned, Breakfast at Tiffany's and In Cold Blood and the point that he was Dill in To Kill a Mockingbird; but going by their expressions, I was sure that I was the wrong man at the wrong place.
They repeated that a movie was made about him recently. So, this time I opted for Kinsey, and asked them if the guy in question carried out research on sexual habits. They roared in laughter, and the first wise guy asked me, "Man, where do you get such info?"
(Now looking back, I can see that, for him, it was very obvious that I was a jerk, because he failed to see the fact that while he could read the name on my back, I could not! It's similar to what happens in all many of the interpersonal relationships: people often don't open up, and yet they expect their partner or the other people to understand them and their feelings, which is a totally wrong approach and which ruins everything.).
I sheepishly told him that I thought the guy was Kinsey. Our second wise friend again told me that he never heard this name; but a lady who was present there, saved my skin by saying that she heard this name. Thank God!
It was too much for them, and so they decided to give me hints: "He traveled across the world and his name was assocaited with horses". My first choice would have been Howard Hughes (though I don't know if he was linked to horses), on whom Martin Scorsese recently made Aviator; but I wanted to pull their leg, and so rather decided to answer "Alexander".
Lo and behold! That was the correct answer, after all. They even appreciated my "intelligence".
Later on, when they would throw hints at a girl who needed to guess Cleopatra, and I mentioned that she used to take bath in donkey milk, the first wise guy said to the rest, "Listen to his specifications; donkey milk!!". All laughed.
At that point I snapped off; I retored,."You cannot hold me responsible for your ingornace; go read or check in the internet, and if you can, prove any of my statements wrong." This didn't make things any better either, except for the fact that they were now even more amused with my lunacy.
It was too much for them, and so they decided to give me hints: "He traveled across the world and his name was assocaited with horses". My first choice would have been Howard Hughes (though I don't know if he was linked to horses), on whom Martin Scorsese recently made Aviator; but I wanted to pull their leg, and so rather decided to answer "Alexander".
Lo and behold! That was the correct answer, after all. They even appreciated my "intelligence".
Later on, when they would throw hints at a girl who needed to guess Cleopatra, and I mentioned that she used to take bath in donkey milk, the first wise guy said to the rest, "Listen to his specifications; donkey milk!!". All laughed.
At that point I snapped off; I retored,."You cannot hold me responsible for your ingornace; go read or check in the internet, and if you can, prove any of my statements wrong." This didn't make things any better either, except for the fact that they were now even more amused with my lunacy.
Later the first wise guy's clue to someone about Julius Caesar was: He lived in the 3rd century B.C. When I pointed out that it was 1st century B.C., he accepted his mistake by saying, "Sorry, it was your guy, Alexander, who lived in the 3rd century B.C." I again corrected him by telling that he was wrong once more, because Alexander ruled in the 4th century B.C. and he died in 323 B.C.
They were not amused!
What does this show? Does it show that I'm smart? NO! All it shows is that I have lot of useless information and, I'm a total bore when it comes to people of the younger generation.
I know, my fate is sealed!
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