The building of one’s intellect brings with it the growth of one’s ego. Edgar Allen Poe called it, “the mad pride of intellectuality”, words that are more valid today than ever before in a culture of micro celebrity and follower counting. We see it in our social media feeds through the boisterous know-it-alls that litter our screens with metaphorical pamphlets of who we should vote for and what causes we must support. The Hare Krishnas of the online world, minus the avoided eye contact.
Yet I believe the evolution of one’s intellect should properly crescendo with a healthy dose of humility. After all, there is the notion that the wisest among us know, above all, that there is much they don’t know. As my man Ben Franklin said, “better to remain silent and thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.”