2008 Woodie Awards
Avoid the blowfish syndrome
By: Diana Edmonson
Issue date: 11/16/07 Section: Opinion
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On the way to class the other morning I thought about what I would want to write for this column and how I would want to begin it. I decided a quote would work. People like quotes, right? They inspire, enrage or cheer others up. But what quote? "Eh, I'll look it up online and find one," I told myself. But then I decided that wouldn't work because it wouldn't mean anything to me. Not really, anyway. Plus, it's not really my knowledge.
I could tell you that a mongoose is a small African or Asian carnivore that chows on rodents and poisonous snakes for dinner and you could think that I was really smart to know that much about something as random as a mongoose. But really, some guy at MSN Encarta is smart, not me.
Or I could remind you of Franklin D. Roosevelt's memorable Declaration of War to Japan speech on December 8, 1941 where he declared the tragedy at Pearl Harbor "a day of infamy." You may think it is impressive that I remembered that date when really, Joe Schmo at famousquotes.com remembered it. I've been trying to remember it since sixth grade, but it's never reached my long-term memory storage box.
On a similar note, I think it's fascinating to hear people talk about things they know nothing about. In high school, I had a friend who almost had me convinced that she knew everything there was to know about a certain popular band and that she hung out with them on weekends and during the summer. She could go on for hours about how amazing it was to ride around with them on tour, give me detailed stories of her escapades with members of the band and then explain how it was impossible for me to meet them. I, on the other hand, had her convinced that I believed her.
Why, at times, do we feel it is necessary to inflate ourselves up with all this false knowledge? It's like a blowfish inflating itself in front of its enemy. Yes, the inflation keeps it from harm, but doesn't it look kind of stupid all puffed-up like that? That's how people look too, puffing themselves up to defend themselves or impress others.
I believe people do it because of a cycle of intimidation and competition. Yes, we're all smart, we've all made it into DePauw after all, but that's not enough. We want to be the best. We want to show others that we're ahead of the game, that we did our research. We want to be the best and we want others to know it. If someone knows more, we're a bit intimidated. We should have known that. We should have been the one standing up in class explaining the mystery of the mongoose to everyone. We don't want to be "that kid" who didn't know what we were talking about.
I'm just as guilty as the next over-achiever. The difference is I'm beginning to realize it. If I don't know something, it's OK. I'm not a walking web browser. Hence the reason for no beginning quote. Sorry quote-lovers, but I would hate for you to think I was smarter than I am.
I could tell you that a mongoose is a small African or Asian carnivore that chows on rodents and poisonous snakes for dinner and you could think that I was really smart to know that much about something as random as a mongoose. But really, some guy at MSN Encarta is smart, not me.
Or I could remind you of Franklin D. Roosevelt's memorable Declaration of War to Japan speech on December 8, 1941 where he declared the tragedy at Pearl Harbor "a day of infamy." You may think it is impressive that I remembered that date when really, Joe Schmo at famousquotes.com remembered it. I've been trying to remember it since sixth grade, but it's never reached my long-term memory storage box.
On a similar note, I think it's fascinating to hear people talk about things they know nothing about. In high school, I had a friend who almost had me convinced that she knew everything there was to know about a certain popular band and that she hung out with them on weekends and during the summer. She could go on for hours about how amazing it was to ride around with them on tour, give me detailed stories of her escapades with members of the band and then explain how it was impossible for me to meet them. I, on the other hand, had her convinced that I believed her.
Why, at times, do we feel it is necessary to inflate ourselves up with all this false knowledge? It's like a blowfish inflating itself in front of its enemy. Yes, the inflation keeps it from harm, but doesn't it look kind of stupid all puffed-up like that? That's how people look too, puffing themselves up to defend themselves or impress others.
I believe people do it because of a cycle of intimidation and competition. Yes, we're all smart, we've all made it into DePauw after all, but that's not enough. We want to be the best. We want to show others that we're ahead of the game, that we did our research. We want to be the best and we want others to know it. If someone knows more, we're a bit intimidated. We should have known that. We should have been the one standing up in class explaining the mystery of the mongoose to everyone. We don't want to be "that kid" who didn't know what we were talking about.
I'm just as guilty as the next over-achiever. The difference is I'm beginning to realize it. If I don't know something, it's OK. I'm not a walking web browser. Hence the reason for no beginning quote. Sorry quote-lovers, but I would hate for you to think I was smarter than I am.
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