happiness != intelligence?
"Happiness goes down the more intelligence goes up."
--- Lisa Simpson ---
Is this true? Is the reason why more intelligent people are more prone to depression is because, the fact, that they are more intelligent? No. The reason why more intelligent people are more prone to depression is because it makes them more prone to loneliness. Albert Einstein once said, "It is strange to be known so universally and yet to be so lonely." As you get more intelligent, you diverge more and more from the current thought process of society. Which basically means the more you know, the less likely you are to think the same as someone else.
It then begins to become more difficult to find a group of people who enjoy talking about and understanding the same thought patterns. Some people become obsessive over thoughts and ideas which prevents them from seeing things that all people have in common. They lose the abilities to make friends, to keep friends, to keep a group of people interested in something. As they become more lonely it makes them increasingly bitter which ironically makes them even more lonely. Mother Teresa put it best, "Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty." That is the true sadness that Lisa is talking about.
The entire point of this is to show that because someone is in intelligent, it does not mean that they are any happier than anyone else. "The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing. " (Socrates). Happiness is found within the trust and love of others.
--- Lisa Simpson ---
Is this true? Is the reason why more intelligent people are more prone to depression is because, the fact, that they are more intelligent? No. The reason why more intelligent people are more prone to depression is because it makes them more prone to loneliness. Albert Einstein once said, "It is strange to be known so universally and yet to be so lonely." As you get more intelligent, you diverge more and more from the current thought process of society. Which basically means the more you know, the less likely you are to think the same as someone else.
It then begins to become more difficult to find a group of people who enjoy talking about and understanding the same thought patterns. Some people become obsessive over thoughts and ideas which prevents them from seeing things that all people have in common. They lose the abilities to make friends, to keep friends, to keep a group of people interested in something. As they become more lonely it makes them increasingly bitter which ironically makes them even more lonely. Mother Teresa put it best, "Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty." That is the true sadness that Lisa is talking about.
The entire point of this is to show that because someone is in intelligent, it does not mean that they are any happier than anyone else. "The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing. " (Socrates). Happiness is found within the trust and love of others.
