Tuesday, February 21, 2012
inetlligence vs. disability
When I hear someone say so and so is so smart, I automatically think they must be perceived as intelligent because they were able to master or understand a task, and do particular well at it. I feel there is no such thing as one person being smarter than another, and simply that everyone is intelligent in their own way. Everyone is wired differently, therefor especially good at some things. One may be really good with numbers and math, and one may be really good with writing and reading etc. There are all types of intelligence. Whereas when many people think of disabled they think of it as a negative and something which holds someone back, makes things more difficult, and often times makes them not the same or not as "smart" as others. I completely disagree with this generalization and view disability as just being wired differently, like intelligence.
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I completely agree with your view that people are generally not smarter of dumber than other people but that we all just have different ways of looking at things. I believe people are smart in different ways and every one has different approaches and ways of going about things. Anyone can learn something from anyone else because, like you said, we are all wired differently and there are many types of intelligences.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your post as well, it brings to mind that quote by Einstein; “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” If you measure a person's intelligence by a very narrow set of definitions, they will either "fail" or "succeed." Yet, you are neglecting to view that person as a whole, by implying that some abilities are valued over others. I feel that throughout my academic life, my shortcomings in math and science constantly overshadowed my success in English and history. I was constantly reminded of my inadequacies, my inabilities and I began to view the ability to understand and work with numbers as being the utmost priority and sign of intelligence. I carried this view throughout my first year of college, where I was convinced that I wanted to become a business major. It was only until the fact that I was completely overwhelmed in my classes and received poor scores that I had to take a serious look at myself, and find my strengths, find the subject that I enjoy and excel in, instead of living up to a narrow definition of intelligence that simply does not apply to me.
ReplyDelete(Diana Zaremba)