What do you think of this quote?

Question

"He enjoys life -- as do all who are spared the curse of intelligence" -- H.P. Lovecraft

Answer 1

I completely agree. Ignorance is bliss. There are days when I would much rather read People magazine, care about American Idol, and think Napoleon Dynamite is funny than actually having a curious brain.

However, when complaining to one of my best teachers about feeling like intelligence was an isolating, empty, and ultimately futile trait, she smiled and said: "True, but sometimes it's the knowing of things that fills in the hollows."

Answer 2

I wonder if Lovecraft felt himself spared the curse of intelligence? :)

I disagree with him: everyone, no matter what their IQ, has stress in their life. If those who are more intelligent have bigger stressors, it's balanced out by bigger joys--intelligent people who are also passionate can find joy where other people don't. I'm a pre-med student, and that's stressful, but I wouldn't trade my extra intelligence for a (maybe?) less stressful life, because I'd also lose the more intense joy I have at even the everyday things in life. I'd counter with this quote I learned in high school:
"He who is first to smell the rose will also be first to feel its thorn." (don't remember the author)

I'll keep my roses and thorns. :) Cool quote, though--kind of the whole "ignorance is bliss" thing.

Answer 3

How about : "The only disability in life is a bad attitude!"

Lovecraft is being a bit cynical in that quote, don't you think? I think that intelligence is only a curse, if the afflicted don't take action in their knowledge's best interest. If you're smart enough to see a problem, you should be smart enough to figure out a solution.

Answer 4

Here's what I'm thinking.
Ignorance is bliss. Yes. But even the "drooling masses" are not ignorant about everything.
I'm not sure I believe it completely, but I'm pretty sure that it's fair to say that if you believe you are smarter than everyone else, you are ignorant to the fact that you are being very ignorant.

Intelligence a curse? Yes, depending upon your attitude. If you believe that you are right and that what u think needs to be different in the world should just change to satisfy you, you will be very frustrated. But, if you recognize that maybe the problem is not so simple. Maybe things are the way they are for a reason, whether its right or wrong.

Knowing what's best is definitely easier than doing what's best.

"Put up, or shut up" is good advice. If you aren't ready to make sacrifices to get what you want. Maybe you don't want it that bad. Maybe in such a case, we aren't nearly as smart as we think we are.

Answer 5

I think that was ol' H.P.'s version of "Ignorance is bliss." After all, ignorance keeps one from realizing that we're all going to be eaten by eldritch horrors from beyond the Void someday... :)

Or maybe it was an observation on how the only way to be happy -all the time- is to keep one's head in the sand, so to speak, because anyone who pays attention is going to notice that not all things in life are good.

Answer 6

People who do not have the ability to think intelligently about the world around them are usually spared the stress of those who can.

Answer 7

Sort of reminds me of the "Ignorance is bliss" statement. To some extent, it's true. The more intelligence you have, the more you see of all the problems and the lack of solutions.

Answer 8

Lovecraft deserves a lot of credit for his novels and for quotes like the one you cite. But whqt about me? I said, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead" but do I get any credit? Hell no!

Answer 9

Though i like this quote. it is true for most part and false for rest. intelligence is a curse if not used properly and for right reasons.

Answer 10

My question is, why Does he enjoy life. We could assume it is due to his lack of this "curse" of intelligence. Honestly, who decided that the lack of intelligence was enjoyable. Acctually come to think of it, it is enjoyable to watch those that lack the "curse". I enjoy it anyway.