Preview

Hidden Intellectualism Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
523 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Hidden Intellectualism Analysis
When someone is called intelligent, people automatically think of how book smart someone is. Book smart relates to how much information about math, science, and english a person knows. In Hidden Intellectualism, Graff brings up the idea that intelligence isn’t all about a scholarly form of thinking. “Everyone knows some young person who is impressively “street smart” but does poorly in school” is the first line of Graff’s essay (Graff 787). Nowadays, it is popular for a person to have the experience and knowledge for an everyday environment but lack knowledge in educational studies. A reasonable answer for this problem could be that schools aren’t tapping into subjects other than the worn out academics that quickly in-interest students. Graff effectively claims “I believe that street smarts beat out book smarts in our culture not because street smarts are nonintellectual, as we generally suppose, but because they satisfy an intellectual thirst more throughly than school culture, which seems pale and unreal” (Graff 790). One may think a person who spends all their time with their nose deep into their sports magazine or rereading the same Vogue issue over and over is wasting their time or …show more content…
An essay on an entertainment subject the writer cares about would be preferable over an essay on a cliche article the writer didn’t want to acknowledge. Schools should allow students to explore more deeply in subjects they care about so that they learn to be more literate and reflective. If schools wanted their students to connect with the intellectual world, it is essential for them to start at a source they’re interested

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    There are several similarities between China’s one child law and Among the Hidden. China had to put the one child law on because they had limited food. China can now have 2 children but it used to be one. In the book Among the Hidden you can have 2 children. In China if you have more than 2 children you have to pay a fine or the extra child is euthanized. They way that some people avoid this in China is that they are rich and they can pay the fine. In Among the Hidden the Barons pay the fine or they get a fake I.D. In China the extra child doesn’t get an education or an I.D. If they don’t have an education they can’t get a job or have health care. In Among the Hidden they have to hide and they get no education, in conclusion I think that it…

    • 168 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    I have a friend who is great at working on cars. He was never taught or trained but he can name every part and its function, tell you what’s wrong and how to fix it, and spit endless facts about car brands that don’t even sound like English to me. However, he never did very well in school. Everyone, his teachers included, said that he lacked “book smarts,” and encouraged him to attend technical school for a mechanics certification rather than a university for a degree. This is very common and probably sounds sensible to you. Gerald Graff, author of, “Hidden Intellectualism,” an article published in the writing guidebook They Say, I Say would disagree. Graff would probably fault my friend’s teachers for not using his interest in cars as a way to encourage academic thinking.…

    • 1289 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In “Hidden Intellectualism” by Gerald Graff, he attests that intelligence is not only in a scholarly way of thinking but also in different forms like being smart about “cars, dating, fashion, sports, TV, or video games”(Graff 245) aka “street smarts”. Graff uses his own experiences from his childhood to help prove his argument by explaining how he was not interested in the traditional academic studies. Graff explained that as he grew up the “brawns” side became more and more pronounced. In his elaboration of the love of sports and how it he subscribed to Sports Illustrated in college. Graff criticizes those who do not put value into "street smarts" for the students…

    • 112 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Who ever said being street smart but not book smart was a bad thing? In his short essay “Hidden Intellectualism” written in 2003 Gerald Graff talks about what people call book smart (Intellectualism) can hide into what one calls “Street Smart”(Hidden Intellectualism). Graff argues about how teachers are going the wrong way on how they should do their job, stating that they can use this to their advantage by using topics that such individuals are interested in whether it’s clothing, sports or even video games to educate them. The essay was illuminating and persuasive at convincing it’s readers because of the ethos, well written counterclaim and purpose. If topics such…

    • 670 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the essay “Hidden Intellectualism”, Gerald Graff references his own experience growing up to explain the reason he thinks academic intellectual should be channeled through a student’s interest rather than traditional teaching to improve academics. He knows that everyone need to read intellectually challenging writings to become intellectuals themselves, but they might have a harder time if they are force to write about something that the teacher may find interesting. The people who were “street smart” would not be so smart when they were in school and could not apply their intelligence to academic work. Gerald uses his own experience growing up and not liking to read anything accept sports magazines. He also talked about how the area he…

    • 213 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Graff uses many logical appeals throughout the article to fully push the ideal of hidden intellectualism. In the opening paragraph Graff tells us of how “we associate those streets smarts with anti-intellectual concerns”. Graff explains that young persons who are impressively street smart do not do well in school, and in return schools and colleges overlook the intellectualism potential of the street smarts kids. This appeals to readers logically because people know as sad as the matter is it is true most times street smart kids are intellectual within what they know, instead of being intellect in school which is Graffs point in Hidden Intellectualism. Colleges and school do not give those “street smart” kids a chance in schools and simply over look them even though they have all the need to be taught how to make an intellectual approach in schools. Another logical approach Graff takes at the audience is by explaining how “if we encouraged them to do so at first on subjects that interest…

    • 850 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The football team from Mountain View High School won the Arizona State Championship last year. Again. Unbeknownst to the vast majority of the school’s student body, so did the Science Bowl Team, the Speech and Debate Team, and the Academic Decathlon team. The football players enjoyed the attentions of an enthralled school, complete with banners, assemblies, and even video announcements in their honor, a virtual barrage of praise and downright deification . As for the three champion academic teams, they received a combined total of around ten minutes of recognition, tacked onto the beginning of a sports assembly. Nearly all of the graduating seniors will remember the name and escapades of their star quarterback; nearly none of them will ever even realize that their class produced Arizona’s first national champion in Lincoln-Douglass Debate. After all, why should they? He and his teammates were “just the nerds.”…

    • 1324 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    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 name-calling so he did not show his intellectual side out of fear. As he wanted to be accepted so badly, he decided to become an “inarticulate, carefully hiding telltale marks of literacy like correct grammar and pronunciation”. (201) Through this, he discovered that he was still able to show his intellectual side by using arguing and reasoning strategies while talking about subjects such as sports and toughness with his friends.…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Among The Hidden Analysis

    • 446 Words
    • 2 Pages

    “Don't give up for your rights, stand up for your rights,”Bob Marley. In Among the Hidden, by Margaret Peterson, one of the main characters, Jen Talbot demonstrated standing up for rights. Twelve-year-old Jen, who lived in a wealthy family, was illegal for being a third child. If the population police were aware of her existence, she would be sentenced to death immediately. Throughout the story, Jen attempted to find a resolution to the issue of the two-child policy , in order to experience freedom and be considered human. Her plan was to protest in front of the president. She attempted to accomplish this by being sly, intelligent, and courageous. Sadly, her voice was unheard and her requests were denied.…

    • 446 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Critique

    • 1329 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Why is it that staying home to read a book is not at the top of a child’s priority list? Obviously it is because children would much rather be outside playing a game of baseball with friends than staying in to do school work. Children usually do not find school subjects interesting. In school, students learn the necessities that will generally help them get through life. Children typically are more interested in things they learn outside the classroom such as sports, video games or the Internet. What if these interests were brought into the classroom and taught? Gerald Graff, the author of “Hidden Intellectualism” argues that there is more than one way to measure intelligence. This essay significantly considers how Graff’s beliefs on “Hidden Intellectualism” can be related to today’s education system. While I somewhat agree with Graff I find it difficult to completely believe that children should be taught only of topics that interest them for the reason that a student should be well rounded and have a general understanding of the other basic academic skills.…

    • 1329 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Hidden Intellectualism

    • 571 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In Gerald Graff’s essay, Hidden Intellectualism, one is exposed to the author’s view of different means of intellectualism. Graff gives the reader an uncommon perception of what it means to be an intellectual. He expresses his views by stating that a person can be an intellectual in fields that have nothing to do with academia, such as street smarts or particular interests. He also states that if you incorporate these particular interests in the classroom, students deemed as unintellectual would be more likely to grasp the taught materials. These students could then perform to their true potential.…

    • 571 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I agree with Rose that the amount of schooling a person complete doesn’t necessarily measure their intelligence level. Especially in today’s economy many people can’t afford to pursue higher education, and that doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t make excellent doctors or lawyers if they could afford the schooling. Not everyone has the means to acquire degrees and titles; some don’t even have the desire. I believe that higher education is a worthwhile endeavor, but I also believe that it is the best route for some and not for all. Attending college is not the only way that a person can lead a happy and fulfilling life.…

    • 309 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    “America Needs Its Nerds”, by Leonid Fridman, analyzes American society’s approach on how it views its intellectuals. In the following passage, Fridman describes how American society should stop looking down on academically serious people, by calling them “nerds” and “geeks”. Instead, these individuals should be treated with more respect. Also, he explains in the passage how Americans stress being social and athletic, rather than being intellectually adroit. Fridman develops his argument that America has anti-intellectual values by using the techniques of hyperbole, rhetorical questions, and logos.…

    • 835 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    My Brilliant Brain • Susan Polgar, Chess Champion Intelligence Chapter 10 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VlGGM5WYZo • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95eYyyg1g5s Psy 12000.003 1 2 What is Intelligence? Conceptual Difficulties Intelligence (in all cultures) is the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use our knowledge to adapt to new situations.…

    • 1920 Words
    • 19 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Intelligence and People

    • 518 Words
    • 3 Pages

    I believe there are many forms of intelligence, some more important than others are. A person may be very smart but when it comes to subjects like math and science, but when it comes to English and writing they may not know much about it. Also, some people may not do very well in school but can fix almost anything that you put in front of them.…

    • 518 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays