In search of an answer to the question of who an intelligent person is, there is no need to become like the hero of the famous novel created by a duo of Soviet classics. The novel says that he never served anywhere because work would have made it difficult for him to think about what the true purpose of the Russian intelligentsia was. The night “gourmet” - a lover of other people's borscht and cutlets - included himself in this stratum of society.
What does it mean to be an intelligent person? Each period of development of society formulated its own definition of this concept. The outstanding Russian scientist and intelligent person Sergeevich, in his letter published in 1993 in Novy Mir, wrote that an intellectual must have intellectual freedom as the main moral category, limited only by his conscience and thought.
If you look into history, then for the second half of the 19th century, an intelligent person is a simple commoner who received an education and sought to become a people only due to his abilities and thirst for science, for knowledge. Its very origin implied a struggle, both against social inequality and against class. Representatives of such intelligentsia were the intellectual idols of youth of the 1860s - Pisarev, Chernyshevsky and Dobrolyubov.
In addition to the “raznochinsky”, at the same time an intelligent person of the “Chekhov” type appeared, who strived for a moral rather than a political reconstruction. Representatives of this group created sowing reasonable and good things, opened schools and hospitals for the poor, and taught peasant children. We find a striking correspondence to this type in the character of the hero of Flaubert’s famous work - the insightful Doctor Larivière, who despised rank and showed generosity and cordiality towards the poor patients. This and other similar images prove the interethnic character of this type of intellectual, somewhat diluting the often mentioned Russian monopoly.
Before the revolution, the writer Leonid Andreev, a friend of Maxim Gorky, gave a definition of an intelligent person as such, who could not tolerate humiliation from the “powers of this world,” had an exhaustingly heightened conscience, and, no matter how drunk he was, still remained cultured and well-mannered.
It has always been difficult for an intelligent person with the above set of qualities to live. But after the proclamation of Soviet power, he generally had to survive. According to the definition of the outstanding Soviet figure Lunacharsky, in order to recognize oneself as a genuine intellectual, three university diplomas are needed: the first is his grandfather’s, the second is his father’s, the third is his own. However, having three educational documents in a family does not guarantee anything - neither developed intelligence, nor the presence of external and internal culture. The above-mentioned definition is also untenable for the reason that it is unlikely that after the revolutionary executions, emigration waves, repressions, exiles and the Gulag, even such formally remained in Soviet Russia. mental work.
Of course, there remained in some places in the country real educated and cultured people who had not resigned themselves to power and cherished sublime feelings in their souls. Its prototypes are often found on the pages of the works of Fedin, Tolstoy, Bulgakov, Zoshchenko and others, but among the victorious boor such people were doomed to extinction.
True, the twentieth century (in its second half) showed the world its worthy and intelligent representatives, nurtured by the dissident and artistic and literary bohemian environment. All of them went through a path of spiritual transformation, based on internal freedom and the best domestic examples of literature, music and painting of the pre-revolutionary and Soviet periods.
The definitions given in this article are, of course, not exhaustive. Search, inquisitive readers, using your intellectual freedom and being guided by thought and conscience.
There is an opinion that every person should be intelligent. But what benefit this brings to others and to the individual himself is often not explained.
What kind of person can be called intelligent?
If you ask respondents to answer this question, there is a high probability that there will be no consensus - opinions will diverge. Some people will prioritize such characteristics of an intellectual as erudition and education in the broad sense of the word. But, according to others, a person can be considered intelligent who will certainly be restrained and careful in his words in the presence of women, that is, he will always be polite.
The answer of both will be correct at the same time incorrect. The whole point is that the concept of an “intelligent person” includes the above definitions. The scientist D. S. Likhachev analyzed in detail what an “intelligent person” is in his article entitled “A person must be intelligent.”
From Likhachev’s point of view, any person, regardless of origin or level of education, can be intelligent. A person either has this quality or he doesn’t, and it is instilled from birth by family and friends who influence the child. Therefore, even ordinary workers can become intellectuals. This personality trait is not equal to the amount of knowledge acquired, but is associated with a thirst for knowledge.
An intelligent person is characterized by sensitivity towards others, endless tact and patience when communicating with others in any situation. Of course, such a person will never use swear words or perform actions that could disrupt harmony with others. Fanaticism in any form is contrary to intelligence.
Of course, you can not rack your brains, but simply turn to the encyclopedic dictionary, which calls an intelligent person who spends his time with mental work. You will have to draw your own conclusion about who an intelligent person is.
Why should a person be intelligent?
If we go by the definition of an intellectual, which is enshrined in the dictionary, it is not necessary for everyone to strive to become such, because not every profession requires a higher education. It is quite possible to do without this. But everyone wants to be treated well. To do this, we ourselves must behave this way with other people, this is exactly what is said in the article by Academician Likhachev.
An intelligent person who takes into account the position of his interlocutor attracts much more people than one who does not want to understand his opponent, but only zealously defends his point of view.
How to become an intelligent person?
Naturally, this is possible at any age. Some are lucky - their parents raised intelligence in them from birth, while others will have to work on themselves. Of course, it is advisable to get acquainted with examples of Russian and foreign classical literature in order to gain a unique style that can later be applied in your own vocabulary. But this is not all that is required to be called an intelligent person.
In the first place are the moral qualities of a person: his ability to build relationships with people close and distant to him, his ability to treat with caution and attention everything that he comes into contact with in life.
Let all these words seem like an edifying sermon to some, but the world rests, among other things, on priceless examples of culture and art that could not have been created without the highly moral spiritual qualities of their creators. And their bright works color our gray everyday life to this day.
Some may argue that arrogant and selfish people are successful now, but everyone decides for themselves.
How many people of the current generation think about what intelligence is? How is it expressed and is it necessary for society at all? There were times when this word sounded like an insult, and sometimes vice versa - this was the name given to groups of people trying to pull Russia out of the darkness of ignorance and stupidity.
Etymology of the word
“Intelligence” is a word that comes from Latin. Iintelligence- cognitive power, the ability of perception, which, in turn, comes from the Latin intellectus- understanding, thinking. Despite the Latin origin of the word, the concept of “intellectual” is considered originally Russian and in the vast majority of cases is used only in the territory of the former USSR and among Russian-speaking segments of the population.
The father of the term “intelligentsia” is considered to be the Russian liberalist writer Pyotr Bobrykin (1836-1921), who repeatedly used it in his critical articles, essays and novels. Initially, this was the name given to people of mental work: writers, artists and teachers, engineers and doctors. In those days there were very few such professions and people were grouped according to common interests.
Who is an intelligent person?
“Cultural and not swearing,” many will say. Some will add: “Smart.” And then they’ll add something about being educated and well-read. But are all doctors of science and great minds of this world intellectuals?
There are enough people in the world with a huge amount of knowledge, who have read thousands of books, polyglots and true masters of their craft. Does this automatically make them part of the intelligentsia, a social stratum?
The simplest definition of intelligence
One of the greatest minds of the Silver Age gave a very short but succinct definition of the concept of intelligence: “This is the highest culture of the human spirit, aimed at preserving the dignity of one’s neighbor.”
Such intelligence is that daily work is constant self-improvement, the result of a huge educational process on oneself, one’s personality, which first of all cultivates in a person the ability to be attentive and empathetic towards another living being. An intellectual, even if he commits a dishonest act under the will of circumstances, will suffer greatly from this and be tormented by remorse. He will rather do harm to himself, but will not be tainted by base things.
Universal human values inherent in an intellectual
According to the results of a social survey, the majority of people indicated the importance of education and good manners. But the great Faina Ranevskaya said: “It is better to be known as a good, but swearing, than a well-mannered bastard.” Therefore, higher education and knowledge of etiquette do not mean that you are an old-school intellectual. The following factors are more important:
- Compassion for the pain of others, no matter whether it is a person or an animal.
- Patriotism, expressed in actions, and not in shouting from the podium at rallies.
- Respect for other people's property: therefore, a true intellectual always pays debts, but takes them out extremely rarely, in the most critical cases.
- Politeness, compliance and gentleness of character are mandatory - they are the first calling card of the intelligentsia. Tactfulness is at the top of their attitude towards people: he will never put another person in an uncomfortable position.
- The ability to forgive.
- Absence of rudeness towards anyone: even if an impudent person pushes an intellectual, he will be the first to apologize for the inconvenience caused. Just don’t confuse this with cowardice: a coward is afraid, but an intellectual respects all people, no matter what they are.
- Lack of intrusiveness: out of respect for strangers, they are more likely to remain silent than to be frank with just anyone.
- Sincerity and unwillingness to lie: again, out of decency and love for the people around you, but more out of respect for yourself.
- An intellectual respects himself so much that he will not allow himself to be uneducated, unenlightened.
- A craving for beauty: a hole in the floor or a book thrown into the dirt excites their soul more than the lack of dinner.
From all this it becomes obvious that education and intelligence are not related concepts, although they interact. An intellectual is a rather complexly structured personality, which is why he is never loved by the lower strata of society: against the background of an esthete who has a keen sense of the world, they feel flawed and do not understand anything, and this is why anger manifests itself, leading to violence.
Modern intellectual
What is intelligence today? Is it even possible to be like this in the arena of total degradation and dullness from the media, social networks and television shows?
All this is true, but universal human values do not change from era to era: at any time, tolerance and respect for others, compassion and the ability to put oneself in the place of another are important. Honor, inner freedom and depth of soul, together with a keen mind and a thirst for beauty, have always been and will be of paramount importance for evolution. And today's intellectuals are not much different from their brothers in the spirit of the century before last, when man - this really sounded proud. They are modest, honest with themselves and others, and are always kind from the heart, and not for the sake of PR. On the contrary, a spiritually developed person will never boast of his actions, achievements and actions, but at the same time he will try to do everything possible to become at least a little better, knowing that by changing himself, he changes the entire world around him for the better.
Do modern society need intellectuals?
Education and intelligence are now as important an aspect as global warming or cruelty to animals. The thirst for money and universal adoration has so captured society that modest attempts by individuals to raise the level of human awareness resemble the painful efforts of a woman giving birth, who, despite all the pain, sacredly believes in a successful outcome.
It is necessary to believe that intelligence is such a culture of the soul. This is not the amount of knowledge, but actions in accordance with moral principles. Perhaps then our world, mired in the mud of a distorted mind, will be saved. Humanity needs bright-hearted individuals, intellectuals of the spirit, who will promote the purity of relationships without mercantile motives, the importance of spiritual growth and the need for knowledge as the initial basis for subsequent development.
When does the formation of moral qualities occur?
In order to be, or rather, to feel like an intellectual and not be burdened by this burden, it is necessary to absorb the inclinations with mother’s milk, to be brought up in the appropriate environment and environment, then highly moral behavior will be like a part of the being, like a hand or an eye.
It is for this reason that it is important not only to raise a child in the right direction, but also to set a clear example with rational actions, correct actions, and not just words.
A very interesting concept is intelligence. It’s always on everyone’s lips, but not everyone understands the true meaning of this word. What is this anyway? Does it have anything to do with education? Is it possible to have one without the other?
In order to draw any conclusions or build various cause-and-effect relationships, it is worth understanding what intelligence is and what education is. Intelligence - the ability to think, listen to other people and make judgments. Moreover, this includes respect for human history, culture and moral integrity. “This is the ability to understand, to perceive the world around us, this is a tolerant attitude towards the world”, wrote the Soviet and Russian philologist, cultural critic, art critic, doctor of philological sciences and professor Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev. That is, a person who observes the laws of decency and behaves culturally in any social environment can be called intelligent. He knows how to control himself, restrain negative impulses and excessive emotionality. He also calmly expresses his thoughts, objectively evaluates his actions and admits mistakes. An intelligent person can safely be called well-mannered. Education same - the presence of knowledge and skills provided by education. To be called an educated person, you must have certain skills. One of the main ones is reading. Moreover, by reading we mean not just “putting letters into words,” but the ability to think and reflect on what is written, evaluate the usefulness of what you read and draw conclusions. The second required skill, writing, consists of unobtrusively and extremely clearly expressing your point of view on paper or in print. Numeracy - knowledge of arithmetic and applied mathematics (the ability to add, subtract, multiply, divide, calculate with fractions and percentages) is the next skill characteristic of an educated person. Also important is the ability to formulate one’s own opinion—to question facts and phenomena and try to trace their connection with reality. Of course, one cannot fail to mention politeness, good manners and a constant desire for self-development.
The difference is simple and obvious: education is directly related to learning, and intelligence is directly related to the state of mind and upbringing. Of course, one can follow from the other, but they are different. An educated person may have intelligence, then he is truly a worthy role model. However, there are common cases when a person has a higher education, high status and good financial situation, but has not learned how to behave correctly in society and communicate with people. These things turn others off. Moreover, they can cause surprise when they do not meet expectations. After all, it’s funny when a person with several higher educations begins to prove something in anger, pays attention only to his own point of view and forgets that others exist? Definitely funny. And it happens when an uneducated person is inherently intelligent: he does not have a decent education, but he is always calm, tolerant, polite and pleasant in communication. After all, a person can be well-mannered, but uneducated. This happens quite often, as proven by countless examples from Russian classical literature.
The very tragic, but at the same time interesting to read, Maxim Gorky’s play “At the Lower Depths” clearly illustrates this situation. The actor, being a former stage performer, found himself poor and began to live in a rooming house. He differs from others in his manner of conversation and love of art, which is one of the most important signs of intelligence. He stubbornly continues to see the beautiful, even when he finds himself among dirt and lies. Another relevant example can be found in Mikhail Bulgakov’s story “The Heart of a Dog.” Professor Preobrazhensky is a true intellectual of the early twentieth century. Among the rude, loud, fanatical revolutionaries represented by Shvonder, he continues to behave calmly and responds culturally to all insults. Preobrazhensky understands that culture is internal education, the ability to conduct an argument through constructive dialogue, and not abuse. Citing examples from literature, one cannot fail to mention Mikhail Lermontov’s novel “A Hero of Our Time,” where Maxim Maksimovich, a man of simple origin, unlike Pechorin, tries to get along with people and help at the call of his soul. He avoids conflicts with officers, is not prone to veneration, is open and truthful.
It is worth saying that intelligence is a rather vague “substance”, which, on the one hand, can be part of education, and on the other, can exist separately. Often this property is instilled by the family. However, there is another opinion - intelligence can and should be learned. There are many ways: look at other people and how they communicate, try to adopt these skills. Moreover, remember how they react to anger, aggression, and how they perceive joy, how often they thank other people or greet them. Also how do they show politeness and most importantly why? At one time it is an established habit, such as saying good morning or saying hello to colleagues, and at another time it is a necessity. For example, when asking a stranger for help.
Is intelligence given to a person by nature? The issue remains controversial. In any case, while encroaching on the heights of knowledge, having diplomas, holding a high position and receiving a large salary, you should not put good manners in second place.
The word “intelligentsia” has changed its meaning more than once, from the noble to the most contemptuous, which once again proves that language is a living organism. But a new time has come and there are even more interpretations, and dictionaries are obliged to record everything in order to please every subjective view. Some openly equate the intellectual with a snob, insisting that he is just a representative of a subculture of pompous, proud people, while others consider the intelligentsia a class of intellectual producers who should occupy a special position in society. So who is an intellectual?
Since reinterpretation of the meaning of this concept has become fashionable, we ourselves decided to offer you the image of an intellectual. First of all, it must be said that it is idealistic, that is, it is as friendly as possible to people. She argues that everyone can be a representative of the intelligentsia, regardless of status, profession and financial status, in other words, the intelligentsia is a cultural and ethical concept that is primarily based on material achievements. Here is a list of ten rules that form it.
1) Philanthropy
2) The value of time
Despite his altruism, an intellectual understands that some people simply waste his time. He easily breaks ties with annoying people who do not share his values and shamelessly impose their own, and never argues with a person if the only point of a verbal skirmish is to satisfy his pride. A self-sufficient person knows his own worth and does not need to pointlessly establish himself in front of someone, paying with time. The intellectual is also strict with activities that rob him. He carefully plans his leisure time so as not to fork out for nonsense that distracts him from self-development.
3) Education
Representatives of the intelligentsia pay great attention to manners. They tactfully tell people where they made a mistake and never make them feel ashamed. Intellectuals know how to keep secrets and do not participate in the spread of rumors and gossip - they are not bothered by hidden malice, and if a polite person wants to speak out, he will do it delicately, but straightforwardly.
4) Modesty
An intellectual will never allow even an indirect hint of his high status. In the company, he is just an employee of a certain profession, even if he has acquired excessive influence and wealth, he conducts the conversation in one language and does not insert quotes in a foreign language into his speech, does not boast about the countries he has visited, but simply moves on to history, as if he had read it from a book. In a word, the less “I” in a conversation, the more personality is revealed.
5) Education and self-education
An intellectual loves knowledge and acquiring new talents. He definitely gets a university diploma, if only because he likes to study, and his leisure time is filled with books, magazines and various articles from the Internet. An educated intellectual does not boast of knowledge: he never speaks in sophisticated words in mundane companies to show his superiority, and does not reproach a person for not reading Doctor Zhivago; moreover, perhaps the intellectual himself is not familiar with this novel . You can’t learn or re-read everything, but you need to know and understand the key works of culture and science and try to attract the attention of others to them.
6) Competent speech
Language is a reflection of the culture of the people, so it must be treated with extreme care. An intellectual is conservative in relation to foreign words and prefers to replace them with Russian analogues, but he never opposes an already established tradition, that is, with his input, a “hobby” can turn into a “passion,” but no one will call a fountain a water cannon. Considerable importance is given to vocabulary and sentence construction to beautifully express thoughts.
What will an intellectual shout when he hits his finger with a hammer? The same as all people. A well-mannered person knows the words of the popular language very well, but in public he uses them once every hundred years, so that the curse is a real impression, and not garbage that is constantly mixed into speech. If a person must express his position on an absurd issue or opinion about a disgusting character, he will use wit or simply remain silent.
7) Independent point of view
A critical mind does not allow itself to be misled. Despite convincing persuasion, an intellectual always makes decisions on his own. He meticulously studies all sides of the issue, using different sources of information, and then takes the opponent’s position and tries to defend it, in order to ultimately act as a judge and decide who is right - the defense or the prosecution. The cool and impartial gaze of criticism disarms any lie, even if it is pleasant - an intelligent person is, first of all, honest with himself.
8) Patriotism
An intellectual is a convinced patriot and an equally convinced cosmopolitan. The whole world is his home and all foreigners are his brothers, but he has only one homeland and he needs to take care of it. A representative of the intellectual class does everything to make life better for his fatherland, and never laments that his country is worse than others. Patriots live in the best states, which they create themselves.
9) Respect for culture
Despite the fact that culture is determined by the entire people, it is the intelligentsia that guides it through eras. Through their work, its representatives preserve the history of the mentality of the people, and not only their own, and thanks to this they form the worldview of future generations.
10) Wealth
A thinking person must be able to realize himself, and for this it is not at all necessary to chase giant heights. The life successes of an intellectual are a stable income from a favorite job, a happy family, loyal friends and, of course, a contribution to the well-being and development of society.
