#cleverness

Can you be sure that others have not come before you and destroyed the pristine state of the native myth? Can you be sure that the natives are not humoring you or pulling your leg? Bronislaw Malinowski thought he had discovered a people in the Trobriant Islands who had not worked out the connection between sexual intercourse and childbirth. When asked how children were conceived, they supplied him with an elaborate mythic structure prominently featuring celestial intervention. Amazed, Malinowski objected that was not how it was done at all, and supplied them instead with the version so popular in the West today – including a nine-month gestation period. “Impossible,” replied the Melanesians. “Do you not see that woman over there with her six-month-old child? Her husband has been on an extended voyage to another island for two years.” Is it more likely that the Melanesians were ignorant of the begetting of children or that they were gently chiding Malinowski? If some peculiar-looking stranger came into my town and asked ME where babies came from, I’d certainly be tempted to tell him about storks and cabbages. Prescientific people are people. Individually they are as clever as we are. ↗

— Carl Sagan

#cleverness #myths #people #primitive #humor

The thing is, comedy's gone in a weird direction. People are really into ironic comedy and fakeness and cleverness. ↗

— Louis C. K.

#comedy #direction #gone #into #ironic

I am sick to death of cleverness. Everybody is clever nowadays. ↗

— Oscar Wilde

#people #death

A stupid man's report of what a clever man says can never be accurate, because he unconsciously translates what he hears into something he can understand. ↗

— Bertrand Russell

#cleverness #intelligence #smart #stupidity #understanding

Passion often makes a madman of the cleverest man, and renders the greatest fools clever. ↗

— François de La Rochefoucauld

#foolishness #intelligence #madness #passion #intelligence

If the Great Way perishes there will morality and duty. When cleverness and knowledge arise great lies will flourish. When relatives fall out with one another there will be filial duty and love. When states are in confusion there will be faithful servants. ↗

— Lao Tzu

#arise #cleverness #confusion #duty #faithful

Never stay up on the barren heights of cleverness, but come down into the green valleys of silliness. ↗

— Ludwig Wittgenstein

#cleverness #come #down #green #heights