Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate The Smart Kids
Human instincts are behaviors that are genetically wired into us to that help us react to our environment, but most of the time they are more hurtful than useful. For example one of them is to follow and be influenced by our surroundings. Since birth we adjust to what family setting we may have and conform to what we see on the outside. At some point this human instinct becomes hurtful to us as conforming makes us most of the time act and think like everyone else. So how is it that conformity hurts individuality in our society? Our technology has gone so far and has improved better than it ever has so information is faster to spread and conforming easier to do. Conformity is in all of us and we don’t seem to realize it until later on, so we must take action now to understand how conforming in our world can be harmful to who we are and the individuality we may have left. In the essay “Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate The Smart …show more content…
He writes “Certainly the image presented by modern celebrities suggests that intellectualism has no ties to success and social legitimacy”(760). What Penrod is saying is that media glorifies non-intellectuals which in result makes intellectuals lose their ambition to continue with their accomplishments. Intellectuals conform to the idea that there is people who are looked up to who don 't have intellectualism so why should they? What is revealed is that Conformity hurts those individuals that may think differently and makes them lose particular characteristics that make them who they are. Not only does conformity take away characteristics but it can make a person obtain characteristics that weren 't there before. We can see this in the essay of Brent Staples “Black Men and Public Space” in which he explains how
Walk On By Brent Staples
1219 Words | 5 PagesStaples further demonstrates understanding by recognizing the fact that many young black men are pulled into the ideal of being a
Brent Staple's Essay 'Just Walk On By'
383 Words | 2 PagesReflection: Further develop the concept of discrimination and stereotyping “Just Walk On By: Predicaments of Black Men in Public Spaces” More often than not, discriminating others by appearance leads to stereotyping, creating a fallacy that people genuinely begin to believe. These stereotypes create barriers that prevent us from truly understanding one another as people. Brent Staple’s essay, “Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space,” allows us to ascertain the deleterious effects of stereotyping in today’s society and the kind of impact it has on various types of people. Staples’s essay describes his experience with stereotyping as a college student in New York. Though Staples perceives himself as a “youngish black
Harrison Bergeron Research Paper
517 Words | 3 PagesIn today’s society the general attitude towards an individual is conform or be an outcast. It is seen in schools where people who do not fit into specific cliques become outcasts, the weird people. It is seen in the work place as well. People have conformed to standards set by society simply because society has said to do so. Society asks people to change themselves to fit in.
Analysis Of Tally's Corner
1311 Words | 6 PagesOn top of this, he argues that the white middle class are unrelenting with their methods of depriving black advancement in American society. Knowledge of this incites many blacks to occupy dead-end jobs, or to settle for mediocrity in the face of adversity. A large number of black males in America find themselves forced to take jobs that offer no security, or socioeconomic growth. He also contends that many blacks are not very literate and therefore left behind in cultural revolutions like the information age. For twelve months between 1962 and 1963, Liebow and a group of researchers studied the behavior of a group of young black men who lived near and frequently hung around a street corner in a poor black neighborhood in downtown Washington, D.C. Liebow’s participant observation revealed the numerous obstacles facing black men on a day-to-day basis, including the structural and individual levels of racial discrimination propagated by whites in society.
Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate The Smart Kids By Grant Penrod
945 Words | 4 PagesWhat Penrod is saying is that the media glorifies non-intellectuals which in result makes intellectuals lose their ambition to continue with their accomplishments.
Hidden Intellectualism Gerald Graff Summary
932 Words | 4 PagesThe reading "Hidden Intellectualism" by Gerald Graff reflects views on being "street smart" and "book smart." He explains that society tends to associate people who are intelligent on solely being "book smart" and performing well in academics, rather than being street smart. He goes on to further explain that students perhaps can be intelligent on topics that interest them. Graff opens up the reading by giving his own personal experience on feeling torn between trying to prove that he was smart yet fearing that he was overdoing it. He was trying to prove that he learned just as much about the real world by reading his sports books and magazines as he would have if he had read the classic works of literature like most students in school.
Black Men And Public Space Rhetorical Analysis
621 Words | 3 Pages“Black Men and Public Spaces” Diagnostic Essay Brent Staples in “Black Men and Public Spaces,” illustrates the inescapable prejudices and stereotyping that African-American men face in America. He does this by relating to his audience through his personal experiences with stereotyping, and sharing his malcontent on how these events have made him alter his way of living. From “victimizing” woman, watching people lock themselves away, and having to whistle classical music to calm the nerves of people around him; Staples builds a picture to help people better sympathize and understand his frustration. Although Staples describes himself as a college graduate, a journalist, and a softy in the face of violence, he details that the overall public deems him a dangerous criminal.
Summary Of Just Walk On By A Black Man Ponders His Power To Alter Public Space
840 Words | 4 PagesIn his essay, “Just Walk on By: A Black Man Ponders His Power to Alter Public Space”, Brent Staples uses the rhetorical strategies of anecdote and diction in order to convey his message that due to racial discrimination black people (mainly men) have to change the way they naturally conduct themselves in public for they run the risk of something terrible happening to them. Staples uses anecdotes to bring in the personal side of the message to the audience. Staples creates a persona of innocence and almost alienation in his writing. Anecdotes such as his both instances in which he accidently scared women on walks and the time in which he and another reporter were mistaken for murder suspects or robbers are used to show real life proof of his message.
Conformity In William Golding's Lord Of The Flies
1009 Words | 5 PagesIn society, there are many standards that people must uphold to. In western society, it is uncommon for men to have long hair or for women to have short hair. Naturally, people will be conscientious of their differences between other people and try to change them or cover them up, and often times people who do not follow the standard are looked down upon. This leads to people trying to fit into the groups around them almost thoughtlessly. However, when people conform without thinking, it can lead to dangerous consequences.
The Orchid Thief Essay
463 Words | 2 PagesThe conflict between personal desires and conformity grows more as we progress; sometimes conformity seems more appealing. Conformity is safe, non stressful, easy, and allows one to feel part of a group. However, it can also be boring and cause us to lose some of our individuality. -Conformity is going with the flow, it requires minimal effort. It is the path of least
Brent Staples 'Black Men And Public Space'
110 Words | 1 PagesIn his essay entitled Black Men and Public Space (1987), Brent Staples talks about how people will have a common misconception on the black community by thinking that they are all mugger ,rapist or thugs. Staples supports his claim by telling the reader events/ stories that occured to him and talks about how people will assume that he is a danger to society when in reality he isnt. The authors purpose is to inform the reader that his experiences of being stereotyped is to show the reader his point of view when it comes to these types of situations. Staples writes in a formal tone for an intelligent or free minded person.
Black Men And Public Space By Brent Staples Summary
841 Words | 4 PagesIn his essay “Black Men and Public Spaces,” Brent Staples explains that people often find him intimidating because he is tall and black. Staples shares his account of a number of personal encounters, arguing that in each situation, he was misinterpreted as being dangerous because of his daunting physical appearance. Staples asserts that as a result of this misinterpretation, he was continually mistreated. Staples begins his article by describing the events leading up to his life-changing realization that he has inherited “the ability to alter public space in ugly ways (183).” When he was twenty-two years old, Staples found himself one evening, walking behind a well-dressed white woman on a deserted street in a rather wealthy neighborhood.
Survival In The Book Thief
1640 Words | 7 PagesA natural human instinct is to do anything in order to survive. Though a person may not necessarily want to survive, the physical body of a person does. The body naturally will try to do anything in order to protect itself and survive even when the person does not notice. Survival comes at a cost that not all people are willing to pay. To survive there are struggles and obstacles that not all are willing to face, but to get through these obstacles an individual is one step closer to survival.
Anti Intellectualism Why We Hate The Smart Kids Summary
923 Words | 4 PagesIn the reading, “Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate the Smart Kids,” Grant Penrod recommends that there should be a different way to socialize amongst other individuals. This entire description explains the personal burdens that the intelligent scholars undergo. The ideas are as follows: author 's guilt celebrates, ideas held as standard when communicating, and on the bandwagon to get smart people worn down by the individuals that are against smart people. The author is afraid that people would not take the time out of their day to read or study for their classes. Claiming that bad influence towards education makes it resistant.
Examples Of Conformity In The Giver
791 Words | 4 PagesDebate-written Assignment, Conformity The idea of conformity is to eliminate individualism and to unite the society together, making it a safer place for the citizens to live, and develop in. A place that has no war, no hunger and no pain, where citizens create strong bonds between each other. The Giver written by Lois Lowry represents the idea of conformity in the society where they try to keep everyone the same as each other by following the same rules and trying to avoid having people stand out by receiving daily pills to lose the feeling of inclination between each other.
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