My book on Dostoevsky: https://ko-fi.com/s/d6ca4e2115

The problem with intellectuals is people assume you have to be intelligent to be one.

An intellectual is just a narcissist who is in love with their mind, rather than their looks.

“ don’t consume too many ideas to the deterioration of your mental well being and soul “ thank you brother . I really needed that .

Always remember it’s important to bring up Dostoyevsky’s Orthodox Faith.
The Fathers of the Orthodox Church have always taught that the intellectual man, the man of worldly wisdom, is more susceptible to pride and haughtiness, therefore making it harder for him to humble his heart and even more his intellect.

I remember when I first read C&P I felt so called out. I had finally found something I was good at, and that was thinking. I ended up riding that skill for my ego and it ended up isolating me from everyone else I was almost convinced I was better than everyone. And then Crime and punishment held up a miror to what i was becoming, and I never felt more alone and sad after that.

I wonder what he would make of modern day academia. I went back to school late in life to get a degree and was struck by the amount of rampant pseudo-intellectualism throughout the faculties. I was also amazed at how prickly people were when their ideas were challenged.

Always good to hear you talk Dostoyevsky!

“Followed French philosophers on Twitter” 😂 On a serious note, thank you for this! Now I understand the respect people have for D. It’s not the poor who start bloody homicidal revolutions, it’s the oversupply of college educated yet ignorant masses.

Those last words about overthinking to the detriment of your well being gave me shivers. Dostoyevsky is truly the pinnacle representation of the thinking man that goes so deep that he arrives back where he started, and finds love for the simple pure ways of humanity.
Great video. ❤

There's much truth to this.  I experienced this when I was an agricultural inspector for the county over 5.5 years.  I learned to listen to the farmers, and I gained a huge respect for what they do, how they do it, and the BS they get from government entities.

“Experience life out in the world not in your head.” The advice that I need to remind myself. Thank you!

The Brothers Karamzov take on intellectuals was an amazing wrap up by Dostoevsky. In his final work, he portrays intellectualism as an illness in Ivan. Someone who is suffering from it but nonetheless redeemable.

TLDR: “Touch grass, bro.”

If one sees only a principle of fraternity, and not also a principle of individuality, he is looking only out his left eye.  If one sees only a principle of individuality, and not also a principle of fraternity, he is looking only out his right eye.  But the clearest vision of reality is only attained by one keeping both eyes open.  So, open both your eyes, and then you will see both principles everywhere in constant operation and incessant competition -- it's called the human condition.  This is because neither principle on its own suffices for human progress and survival.

This was great. Some self criticism I was able to derive with the help of this video is that I myself am a hypocrite, and seek to separate myself from others, not because they are truly less than me but because I fear the parts of myself I see in them, and that I lack their integrity in their ability to live their truth openly.

You don’t have to be a Dostoevsky to despise intellectuals

I'd hardly call Hitchens an intellectual. Harris is an intellectual. Hitchens was an angry man with a quick wit and legitimizing accent.

Referring to the thumbnail, which is, admittedly, a thumbnail.

Edit: ok, based on the actual video, he can count as an intellectual xD

A great presentation and reminder that NOTHING has changed!

This clip reminded me of Eric Hoffer's maxim "Scratch an intellectual and underneath you'll find an aristocrat who despises the sight and sound of the common man." But while a very good exposition, there are more than a few reasons that people retreat from the world.  There's a lot of hostility in human company, a lot of maliciousness, for largely no reason at all. People are often just unkind, especially to people who are not confident in themselves and even those with strong personalities often weary of dealing with others. I do advocate not spending too much time in front of a computer, but I'm not sure other people are the answer to our problems.  As often as not, they're the source.

The House of the Dead/The Dead House kind of reads like Johnny Cash's prison albums in prose. And in Russia.