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Intellectual curiosity results in depression?
I'm starting to think this may be true. I love to learn, particularly in science, philosophy and politics. I am an atheist/agnostic, a determinist and I believe strongly in science. My beliefs can be fascinating but essentially make everyday life completely depressing. I'm so cynical of people, it's hard to value merit when you just see it as a result of fortunate circumstances, etc. Because I read quite a lot and like to think deeper it also makes conversation with most of the population utterly depressing (this may come across as arrogance but I'm not particularly bothered). I currently have a job which is not exactly mentally challenging and the people there talk about the most ridiculous things. I'm not a social recluse or anything and I do enjoy company but it's getting so hard now, I daren't start a political debate or anything like that over lunch for fear of the looks I'll get. I'm going to university soon and I think it will be great being around similar people but I can't stay there forever, will it always be this hard?
It's not just socialising aswell, it's the outlook on everything. It makes me more laid back but that's not always a good thing. I find it hard to get excited about anything any more outside academia. Do you think glum feeling is a separate issue or is it an inevitable consequence of learning?
It's not just socialising aswell, it's the outlook on everything. It makes me more laid back but that's not always a good thing. I find it hard to get excited about anything any more outside academia. Do you think glum feeling is a separate issue or is it an inevitable consequence of learning?
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Reply 1
I don't know what to say to help really except that I feel exactly the same as you sometimes.
Reply 2
Anonymous
I'm going to university soon and I think it will be great being around similar people but I can't stay there forever, will it always be this hard?
For someone of your self-proclaimed intelligence you should be aiming for only better things upon completion of Uni. Masters degree? Look for a job that will challenge you rather than the usual mundane jobs. If you do excell then you'll surely be a worthy employee?
Note: You may feel that you're the most intelligent person you know out of your social circle in your home town, or perhaps are of above average general 'intelligence' (presuming one person can be declared smarter than another) in your area but you may find Uni and the people you'll encounter there a challenge.
Anonymous
I find it hard to get excited about anything any more outside academia.
I find it hard to get excited about anything any more outside academia.
Music is everyones friend
Reply 4
I feel exactly the same way. Try listening to music or writing prose poetry. Maybe just write things down, it helped for me.
It's not an inevitable consquence of learning. Without being too immodest, I'm pretty well read on a variety of topics (especially history and political theory, but also some philosophy) and this hasn't resulted in depression at all for me, or particularly anti-social behaviour. I have a healthy social life and yet I maintain a solid interlectual curiosity and pursue this. I would read if I were you. Lots.
Start with Candide by Voltaire. I think you might find it interesting.
Start with Candide by Voltaire. I think you might find it interesting.
Reply 6
I get this all the time its a mixture of mild depression and an over elaborate mind. If I do a job with people sometimes I end up just wanting to kill them because of the levels of triviality and ignorance. I know its sounds incredibly arrogant but I much prefer the company of intellectuals.
Reply 8
If you were THAT intelligent, you wouldn't give a dogs right nut about the deep 'life questions'...
Reply 9
i think it's kind of more a question of still having so many things unanswered, regardless of how intelligent you are. like, intelligent people are satisfied by knowing that they know stuff.
and so it's incomprehensibly frustrating when it seems that the stuff you know is completely useless and pointless and futile because there are so many big and important things that you can never know. why we came to be. what our point is now. what there is for us after.
i chose to ignore it all
or else my brain would implode.
and so it's incomprehensibly frustrating when it seems that the stuff you know is completely useless and pointless and futile because there are so many big and important things that you can never know. why we came to be. what our point is now. what there is for us after.
i chose to ignore it all
or else my brain would implode.Reply 10
"Intellectual curiosity" resulting in depression. I'd totally agree with that simply because asking too many questions, analysing everything can make life and socialising very difficult.
However to claim that it's "clever" or "intelligent" to act in such a way, is totally wrong.
Without being completely arrogant, I did view myself as someone quite intelligent back in high school: top of my class in a really good school and to be honest, anything academic I excelled at.
However, I realised later that there's a limit to everyone's abilities, be they physical, mental or other and I've ended up disagreeing totally with the notion of "intelligence".
The vast majority of people excell in certain areas and fall back in others. That's life. The only times that people end up believing that they're amazingly intelligent and distance themselves is when they LIMIT their view of intelligence to an area that suits them.
There are excellent talkers with amazing social skills but rubbish at anything analytical; There are people who can make quick decisions efficiently and then there are philosophers or mathematicians who are social recluses. I would NEVER claim that one group is more intelligent than the other.
How can a brainy kid, good at school be called "intelligent", if he can't establish good social relationships or is rubbish at making decisions. It's not to say that you can't have one with the other. Of course you can. But you should never look down on people, because in a limited area that you have set yourself, you excel more than others.
When I call up the plumber to get something fixed and he tells me that he was crap at school, I don't think "Boy, being at uni, I'm so much brainier than this guy". I think "This guy knows stuff that I don't know. He thinks in a way that I'm incapable of. Sure I could claim that I could easily learn but how sure am I?"
However to claim that it's "clever" or "intelligent" to act in such a way, is totally wrong.
Without being completely arrogant, I did view myself as someone quite intelligent back in high school: top of my class in a really good school and to be honest, anything academic I excelled at.
However, I realised later that there's a limit to everyone's abilities, be they physical, mental or other and I've ended up disagreeing totally with the notion of "intelligence".
The vast majority of people excell in certain areas and fall back in others. That's life. The only times that people end up believing that they're amazingly intelligent and distance themselves is when they LIMIT their view of intelligence to an area that suits them.
There are excellent talkers with amazing social skills but rubbish at anything analytical; There are people who can make quick decisions efficiently and then there are philosophers or mathematicians who are social recluses. I would NEVER claim that one group is more intelligent than the other.
How can a brainy kid, good at school be called "intelligent", if he can't establish good social relationships or is rubbish at making decisions. It's not to say that you can't have one with the other. Of course you can. But you should never look down on people, because in a limited area that you have set yourself, you excel more than others.
When I call up the plumber to get something fixed and he tells me that he was crap at school, I don't think "Boy, being at uni, I'm so much brainier than this guy". I think "This guy knows stuff that I don't know. He thinks in a way that I'm incapable of. Sure I could claim that I could easily learn but how sure am I?"
Reply 11
I feel the same way. I wouldn't say I believe in science as such but I have a strong passion for philosophy and I often find myself in existential depression, noticing the meaninglessness in things and believing there's nothing objective. It can be deeply frustrating sometimes but I wouldn't swap these feelings for anything. I'd rather be depressed but free to explore philosophy, truth and knowledge than be happy and ignorant. Being passionate for philosophy makes me feel content, even if I can feel sad within that at times.
Reply 12
I know what you mean...
...if that helps.
...if that helps.
Actually, good point Soc.
I work witha bunch of engineers who have no social skills whatsoever. And they really make the office a strange place to be. Please, please work on your social skills, it will make life lots easier. Also, you CAN still be intelligent and know about pop culture which will mean you have something to talk to everyone about. It doesn't mean you'll start aspiring to be Jordan or call your kids after the place they were conceived.
I work witha bunch of engineers who have no social skills whatsoever. And they really make the office a strange place to be. Please, please work on your social skills, it will make life lots easier. Also, you CAN still be intelligent and know about pop culture which will mean you have something to talk to everyone about. It doesn't mean you'll start aspiring to be Jordan or call your kids after the place they were conceived.
when i went to work during my gap year, i felt excatly the same. I also had a job that wasn't very challenging and hated the conversations of celeb's, boob jobs, blah blah....
but eventually i made my own friends and was able to have other conversations.
I also found that towards the end of the year, i began to get into the whole celeb's and boob job converstions...this was prob cos i wasn;t stuyding during the year and had to fill my brain up with something! at the end of the day, u will have to mix with a variety of people throughout your life, and this experience will do you good.
and yes, when i went to uni, i realised that i'm not the most intelligent person ever.
but eventually i made my own friends and was able to have other conversations.
I also found that towards the end of the year, i began to get into the whole celeb's and boob job converstions...this was prob cos i wasn;t stuyding during the year and had to fill my brain up with something! at the end of the day, u will have to mix with a variety of people throughout your life, and this experience will do you good.
and yes, when i went to uni, i realised that i'm not the most intelligent person ever.
Reply 16
Anonymous
I'm starting to think this may be true. I love to learn, particularly in science, philosophy and politics. I am an atheist/agnostic, a determinist and I believe strongly in science. My beliefs can be fascinating but essentially make everyday life completely depressing. I'm so cynical of people, it's hard to value merit when you just see it as a result of fortunate circumstances, etc. Because I read quite a lot and like to think deeper it also makes conversation with most of the population utterly depressing (this may come across as arrogance but I'm not particularly bothered). I currently have a job which is not exactly mentally challenging and the people there talk about the most ridiculous things. I'm not a social recluse or anything and I do enjoy company but it's getting so hard now, I daren't start a political debate or anything like that over lunch for fear of the looks I'll get. I'm going to university soon and I think it will be great being around similar people but I can't stay there forever, will it always be this hard?
It's not just socialising aswell, it's the outlook on everything. It makes me more laid back but that's not always a good thing. I find it hard to get excited about anything any more outside academia. Do you think glum feeling is a separate issue or is it an inevitable consequence of learning?
It's not just socialising aswell, it's the outlook on everything. It makes me more laid back but that's not always a good thing. I find it hard to get excited about anything any more outside academia. Do you think glum feeling is a separate issue or is it an inevitable consequence of learning?
Okay, i totally understand, and actually have gone through what you are talking about. I'll ellaborate, i was taking part in HMC (Harvard Model Conference) and i chose to participate within the security council. (I hate americans so i wanted to create a mutiny from within) So i was choosing a position, one with power, between the secretary of state, or the secretary of defence. And i asked a couple of people, and then i asked my really close friends who turned around to say, "Whats the difference?" , "Who the **** is Donald Rumpsfeld?", "CONDOLENCIA WHO?" (Condeliza rice - or whatever)
i was just like great everyone around me is an ignoramus twit. I became a recluse unless the company was challenging- intresting or merely mentally captivating.
However, a lot of my intrests have to be above from academia. Just to progress with life open my mind further, pop-culture was not entirely hurl worthy. I read too much for my own good, and too much for my own age, that i am constantly or choose to constantly be an outsider, i do not want to be a part of society - that regards getting wasted / high a primary intrest, or that sports is end all of the world or perhaps that computer science is all you need to know.
I love literature, history, art, politics, fashion etc. I am alone in my intrests atleast in my part of the world, but you have to see the best in people, what they like that you like. In uni, ultimately ul be applying for a course that intrests YOU. Im sure, people who apply worthy enough will be put on that course too. You'll be plonked in a group with ALOT of intrests like you- just dont be closed about it. Hold on for now, till Uni.
But im sure ul grow further, dont limit the possibilty of your intellectual curiosity. Intellectual is different in alot of peoples minds, for example someone who doesnt understand the faults in capitalism is a tad too ignorant etc to me. At the end of the day- its someone who you can sustain a conversation with. Which im sure ul find within Uni.
Hold on.
Reply 17
I feel the same.. It's horrible.
Bull****
The reason are people are intellectually curious is because they are allready depressed
so its just a build up of depression rather than it resulting in it
If your completley happy and sociable then in my opinion there is no reason to be intellectually curious
People who think they are depressed thinking learning more about the world will get them out of it, when the opposite is true. In my opinion its better to be ignorant and happy, rather than wise/ knowledgable and unhappy
After all Socrates summed up knowledge in one sentance. "The only thing that I know is that I know nothing"
The reason are people are intellectually curious is because they are allready depressed
so its just a build up of depression rather than it resulting in it
If your completley happy and sociable then in my opinion there is no reason to be intellectually curious
People who think they are depressed thinking learning more about the world will get them out of it, when the opposite is true. In my opinion its better to be ignorant and happy, rather than wise/ knowledgable and unhappy
After all
Socrates summed up knowledge in one sentance. "The only thing that I know is that I know nothing"Reply 19
Bull****
The reason are people are intellectually curious is because they are allready depressed
so its just a build up of depression rather than it resulting in it
Not true in the slightest. Knowledge and understanding can make me feel extremely happy at times and I certainly wouldn't even dream of trading my curiosity for sociability.
If your completley happy and sociable then in my opinion there is no reason to be intellectually curious
If you're going down that line of reasoning, you may as well say the opposite is true too. Objective reason or not, some feel a compelling urge to understand and master a concept. There may not be a reason to do this if you're sociable but we don't tend to do things because of reason, we do it out of desire - "why are you eating that Big Mac? There's no reason for you to, plus it's bad for you!", "because I want to".
In my opinion its better to be ignorant and happy, rather than wise/ knowledgable and unhappy
Therein lies the problem - you assume people have a similar personality, but they don't. I don't like socializing and I never have - it's draining, claustrophobic and pressured. It makes me feel tired, sad and itching to get away. There are times that I do have a desire to socialize, most humans do, but this desire is significantly outweighed by my desire to understand.
After all Socrates summed up knowledge in one sentance. "The only thing that I know is that I know nothing"
Of course, because the claims of one out of an almost uncountable number of philosophers should be taken as true? There are many who would reach different conclusions, including me.
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