At my baby shower on Friday, there were many children, ranging in age from 6 months to 15 years. You can really spot the representatives of the intellectual class because they tend to have really amazing children.

The kids at the shower were not inhibited, zombified, or terrorized. It was obvious that nobody scripted their every move or used them as a substitute for professional fulfillment. They ran around, played, and had fun.

At the same time, even the smallest among them were not high maintenance, did not require that everybody stare at them all the time, and didn’t get in the way of adult activities. Also, all of the kids understood more than one language, which is to be expected at a party where most people teach foreign languages.

Children of the intellectual class learn very early on life to communicate verbally in very effective ways. They don’t bray stupidly to transmit their wishes but express themselves in beautiful complete sentences.

A colleague of mine raised 4 brilliant children, all of whom are professionally and academically successful. Given that she raised the eldest two as a single mother on food stamps, this is quite a feat.

“What did you do to make them so great?” I asked my colleague.

“Oh, I never had time to develop a specific parenting strategy. There was always too much work, too many things going on for me to get hung up on parenting models. But the kids grew up hearing intelligent conversations all day and every day, and this seems to have been enough.”

10 responses to “The Children of the Intellectual Class”

  1. Titfortat Avatar
    Titfortat

    IQ/EQ…………Hmmm?

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  2. musteryou Avatar

    There is something to the idea that one is born to do certain tasks. Nietzsche certainly thought that one’s familial background had a lot to do with how one approached intellectual matters. As for me, my instincts are almost all military, which is strange. I just think in terms of strategy, logistics, tactics, all those sorts of things.

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    1. Titfortat Avatar
      Titfortat

      . I just think in terms of strategy, logistics, tactics, all those sorts of things.(muster)

      Considering the way you describe your upbringing why is that not a surprise???

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      1. musteryou Avatar

        Some people from my background don’t describe their upbringing that way, but if you look at my family, a lot of the background is strongly military, as well as some magistrates, that sort of thing.

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      2. musteryou Avatar

        But if I really think about what makes me happy, it is thinking in terms of battles and how to win them.

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  3. Titfortat Avatar
    Titfortat

    You fit quite well into the patriarchy then. 😉

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    1. musteryou Avatar

      who me? Not at all. The funny thing about the military is that in theory, and in any case when it is working effectively, you have an impersonal identity. So identity is not gendered. That is why the military is often the first place where racial segregation breaks down.

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  4. Titfortat Avatar
    Titfortat

    So identity is not gendered. That is why the military is often the first place where racial segregation breaks down.(Muster)

    So what youre saying is that in the military they first would make it a racial issue before making it a gendered issue? Ummm, uhhhh, help me out here????

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  5. David Gendron Avatar

    I’m not a child of the intellectual class.

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A conservative literary critic and college professor