Summary Of Intellectuals: Gone Or In The Shadows

In “Hidden Intellectualism,” Gerald Graff believes that individuals, who are ot interested in school, have a chance to be intellectual by inspiring them on subjects they themselves are interested in instead of forcing them to correspond with cliché historic figures. Graff begins his essay acknowledging the perception communities have on behavior of streetwise people who are looked at as “anti-intellects.” (264) Furthermore, he explains how society connects intelligence with historic heroes instead of modern subjects like sports or fashion; which Graff emphasizes is the issue. Graff supports his claim by providing a personal experience of growing up; he was that “anti-intellectual” (265) who preferred sports magazines and biographies rather

In the reading written “Hidden Intellectualism “ by Gerald Graff, he states how society is being related to “street smart” and intellectualism. Graff states that understanding can be part of “ street smart “, Graff argues with life experience as text and subjects that show no interest in learning cause there some students would rather learn about subject that actually interest them more which is very encouraging to rather not doing the one which don’t interest us. Street smart has made life a bit difficult as when there are boundaries that separate smart with the hood, when Graff states that in Chicago there were boundaries of “clean-cut “ and “hoods” like be smart or get beaten. Graff has proven that “street smart “ can overcome the society

In Grant Penrod’s essay called Anti-Intellectualism: Why We Hate Smart Kids he starts by talking about his high school football team and that they won the championship again this year. He says the speech and debate team also won the championship this year. The football team continues to receive mass amounts of praise and attention even after their win, while on the other hand the academic teams that won receive miniscule amounts of recognition. The academic teams might get a shout out at the end of an assembly, but never the amount of praise that the football team receives. The educated kids have the label of nerd and with this label; social norms become more difficult for them. Penrod says that even celebrities make it look like dropping out

In “America Needs Its Nerds” by Leonid Fridman, he shows his concerns of social acceptance. Fridman’s purpose is to reconstruct social acceptance and emphasize how intelligence is necessary to be a world-class power through a matter-of-fact tone that proves there is no better choice to all social classes.

Graff opens “Hidden Intellectualism” by presenting one of the piece’s three major points of focus. He states, “What doesn’t occur to us, though, is that schools and colleges might be at fault for missing the opportunity to tap into such street smarts and channel them into good academic work” (Graff 264). By introducing his argument as something that is commonly dismissed by a large group of people, he utilizes the writing template in They Say I Say for introducing what “they say” as a tool to keep the big

In today’s society, constant judgement as to how well you fit in achieves nothing, rather distinguishes hope for improvement. Ideas including being looked down upon for an individual’s intelligence or being pushed aside from groups due to one’s academic ability are becoming an epidemic as those who seek to better themselves are seen as inferiors. The United States today is accustomed to issues as far as the negative deterioration towards those who possess higher mental values. In America Needs Its Nerds by Leonid Fridman, a look into how geeks and nerds are identified, the reality of childhood dilemmas, and the problem in the broad spectrum of the globe are all noted and questioned as to why America as a society expresses such a negative position

In today’s society students aren’t pushed in high school to pursue their full potential, which makes students think they don’t need to put hard work into school making them lazy. The outcome of this is bad grades and upset parents making them believe they aren’t smart and that is why they are getting the grades they are receiving. In actuality these students aren’t being pushed and the teachers aren’t tapping into their talents to show them the full academic potential they have.

Everyone follows the current fashion. People just want to fit in and be cool. In this generation, others make fun of the kind of shoes you have and what you wear. Therefore it makes us feel that we need to be like others and dress like others in order to be

In Hidden Intellectualism by Gerald Graff, he begins with the argument of “street-smarts” versus “school-smarts”. Graff explains that school-smarts can be hidden within street smarts and can be learnt through not just talking with friends, but also from the media and our surroundings, hence the “hidden” intellectualism. He goes onto explain that “schools and colleges overlook the intellectual potential of street-smarts” (198) because these types of intellectualism are actually considered anti-intellectualism. Graff then begins to discuss that intellectualism is often looked down upon within schools, and people that are considered “school-smart” are seen as nerdy, or boring. We learn that as a child, Graff was afraid of bullying and

In the American society, the exterior of a human has higher values than the interior. For instance, an athlete is held in high regard by the public, due to their aesthetically appealing body and the proficient ability to do physical activities. On the other hand, a nerd or geek is seen as an outcast in society, because of their intelligence. These uneven values of society are exactly what the founding member of the society of Nerds and Geeks at Harvard University, Leonid Fridman argues upon in his writing of “America Needs its Nerds.” Through the rhetorical strategies of tone, pathos, and rhetorical questioning, Fridman emphasizes the significance of intellectually driven people in America.

One might even notice that this whole “clothing epidemic” is going on right in front of their own eyes. Girls these days especially are prone to being sucked in by the way they dress. They believe that how they dress affects their popularity status. I myself have gone through this being a young girl at one point! I wonder where they could have gotten this idea from? Oh, that is right, this idea has been going on since the ancient times!

Fashion is very important in modern day society, and can be seen all around. Most of what people know about fashion today came from the fashion during the renaissance. From the vibrant fabrics to the spectacular jewels, renaissance fashion has been thoroughly threaded in the fashion of modern society. Modern day women often wear shorty, fun gowns, tightly fitting jeans, and lower cut tops. Popular fashion trends for men in modern society include saggy jeans, V-neck shirts, and stylish watches. “A fashion is merely a form of ugliness so unbearable that we are compelled to alter it every six months” (Oscar Wilde). Fashion in modern day society is ever changing, but most changes do not stray too far from the original product.

“Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist.” (Self-Reliance; Ralph Waldo Emerson) Being a nonconformist is a good thing. Before a new fashion trend is set, there are those who oppose it and think that the ones wearing it look “tacky,” but later on, when the new trend is set, those who are not wearing the “trendy” outfit are the ones who look “tacky.” This is the endless cycle of how new trends are set. Someone wears something new, and the others follow. Without the “tackys” who do not conform and wear what they like, even if others do not like it, there would be no new trends. Style is a very important factor in our society. It lets you know what a person is

By looking deeper into the subject I have concluded that fashion is influenced by the happenings of a certain time period. Each time period has its own definitive style which is brought out through fashion. It can be concluded that social and cultural influences are the driving force behind fashion and how it is portrayed in each decade.

When one thinks of fashion, the economy is certainly not the first thing that comes to mind. However, the two go hand in hand. Throughout history, fashion trends have changed millions of times, at a rapid rate. New trends can surface and disappear as frequently as the sun sets. The fashion industry, much like the economic state of our nation, is ever-changing. It has its highs and its lows. Fashion trends often reflect the economic factors of the times they are associated with. Furthermore, it is not a question of if the economy impacted fashion, it is a question of how? And how much?