It's quite the ubiquitous thing. The best way to sound intelligent is to quote other people. We all do it, we all accept it and we believe it. If I can quote the masters in literature or the most brilliant minds that every lived, I do sound smarter. Additionally it is a strange thing to just quote anyone famous. They don't have to be scholars, or particularity learned, just famous. We will quote and misquote them as evidence of our " truth. " We offer these quotes as proof positive. After all, if we have read all this stuff, surely we are smart. It's my thinking a great deal of the college curriculum is concerned with all that. Reading and then explaining what was written. The thing is, you do have to explain it the way your professor taught you, or you won't have the right answers. It is a type of catch 22. How else could the professor evaluate whether you " learned " the lesson or not? I mean, there has to be a standard answer right? Well now, that all depends upon who we choose to quote when it comes to philosophy, ethics and morality issues. Sure we can agree on mathematical formulas and scientific facts they are fairly straightforward and provable. Human nature and human interaction not so much.
Now I often employ quotes in my writing. I find quotes as a validation for my own thoughts. What I mean is, I haven't necessarily read any works by that author, but found a quote by him or her that expresses exactly what I was thinking about. The quote is an explanation. I especially enjoy the more succinct ones. You can call them witticisms or zingers as well. I think of them as the condensed version of an essay. Sorta like those Readers Digest condensed books. They get right to the point of the story, a no frills approach. As I said, I will use quotes in my writings and yes, the intent is to add credibility to my statements. Hey, if John Locke or James Madison thought the same thing I must be on the right track. Of course that is dependent upon you. Do you believe what John Locke or James Madison thought? It's a matter of trust really. You see, I'm not famous or a recognized scholar so just quoting " Ben " isn't saying much. No one feels obligated to agree with that! It is far more difficult to dispute say, Ben Franklin or Socrates. And if I can say it in Latin, so much the better.
It has been said " imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. " ( Charles Caleb Cotton ) Ever hear of him? I admit I hadn't until recently. He also said, " The writer does the most who gives his reader the most knowledge and takes from him the least time. " And that is a sentiment I share with him wholeheartedly. I do like to get to the point. I find it is quite the difficult thing to accomplish. I used to believe that those who wrote volumes were the smartest, but now I'm not so convinced. I have decided that there is little that can be said that hasn't been said before. The " trick " lies in saying it in a way you haven't heard it before. Do that and you will be quoted. And the strangest thing about that is, it doesn't prove a thing. It's a flattery though.
What about those that do write an entire volume, a book? Well it can take a book to explain a single thought. That's why we study them isn't it? I like to reverse engineer things myself. Take it apart and see how it works. For that reason I have always been prone to read the quote , then look up the author. Sometimes I agree with the author and sometimes I don't. Surprisingly, terrible people have said amazingly intelligent stuff! We avoid quoting them however. If you quote someone it is assumed you agree with them. Well unless the intent is to disparage someone else, then those quotes become a weapon. You know, like name calling, only more intelligent, sorta.
I'll finish up by saying I am in the process of writing a book. Yup, I feel the need to explain. So far that is what this " book " is shaping up to be, an explanation. I have discovered that the majority of my " blogs " are just the condensed version of my thoughts. I am discovering writing the explanation is far more challenging. It is a validation of what Mr. Cotton had to say about taking the least time. But by being brief you rely upon the readers assumptions. That usually isn't a good thing.
Writing a book requires you to be alone for only you know your thoughts. Mr. Cotton had something to say about that as well. " To dare to live alone is the rarest courage, since there are many who had rather meet their bitterest enemy in the field, than their own hearts in the closet. " Could be that's why we hear so much hate and discontent today. Could be " humanity " needs a little bit more alone time. And that is accomplished one person at a time. Is there a quote in all of this? " Say something worth repeating " is my first thought. Oh, you can quote me on that if you like, or adopt it as your own. The value lies in the thought, not who said it.
Now I often employ quotes in my writing. I find quotes as a validation for my own thoughts. What I mean is, I haven't necessarily read any works by that author, but found a quote by him or her that expresses exactly what I was thinking about. The quote is an explanation. I especially enjoy the more succinct ones. You can call them witticisms or zingers as well. I think of them as the condensed version of an essay. Sorta like those Readers Digest condensed books. They get right to the point of the story, a no frills approach. As I said, I will use quotes in my writings and yes, the intent is to add credibility to my statements. Hey, if John Locke or James Madison thought the same thing I must be on the right track. Of course that is dependent upon you. Do you believe what John Locke or James Madison thought? It's a matter of trust really. You see, I'm not famous or a recognized scholar so just quoting " Ben " isn't saying much. No one feels obligated to agree with that! It is far more difficult to dispute say, Ben Franklin or Socrates. And if I can say it in Latin, so much the better.
It has been said " imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. " ( Charles Caleb Cotton ) Ever hear of him? I admit I hadn't until recently. He also said, " The writer does the most who gives his reader the most knowledge and takes from him the least time. " And that is a sentiment I share with him wholeheartedly. I do like to get to the point. I find it is quite the difficult thing to accomplish. I used to believe that those who wrote volumes were the smartest, but now I'm not so convinced. I have decided that there is little that can be said that hasn't been said before. The " trick " lies in saying it in a way you haven't heard it before. Do that and you will be quoted. And the strangest thing about that is, it doesn't prove a thing. It's a flattery though.
What about those that do write an entire volume, a book? Well it can take a book to explain a single thought. That's why we study them isn't it? I like to reverse engineer things myself. Take it apart and see how it works. For that reason I have always been prone to read the quote , then look up the author. Sometimes I agree with the author and sometimes I don't. Surprisingly, terrible people have said amazingly intelligent stuff! We avoid quoting them however. If you quote someone it is assumed you agree with them. Well unless the intent is to disparage someone else, then those quotes become a weapon. You know, like name calling, only more intelligent, sorta.
I'll finish up by saying I am in the process of writing a book. Yup, I feel the need to explain. So far that is what this " book " is shaping up to be, an explanation. I have discovered that the majority of my " blogs " are just the condensed version of my thoughts. I am discovering writing the explanation is far more challenging. It is a validation of what Mr. Cotton had to say about taking the least time. But by being brief you rely upon the readers assumptions. That usually isn't a good thing.
Writing a book requires you to be alone for only you know your thoughts. Mr. Cotton had something to say about that as well. " To dare to live alone is the rarest courage, since there are many who had rather meet their bitterest enemy in the field, than their own hearts in the closet. " Could be that's why we hear so much hate and discontent today. Could be " humanity " needs a little bit more alone time. And that is accomplished one person at a time. Is there a quote in all of this? " Say something worth repeating " is my first thought. Oh, you can quote me on that if you like, or adopt it as your own. The value lies in the thought, not who said it.
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