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Patrick Greco
Professor Sotirakopulos
Honors Composition 1102
28 August 2015
Hidden Intellectualism
In his essay, Hidden Intellectualism, Gerald Graff argues the importance of
intellectualism over academic intelligence. Graff explains how as an adolescent, he hated books
and cared only for sports. His lack of interest in schoolwork originally led him to believe he was
an anti-intellectual person, but over time he realized his passion for discussing sports played a
large role in developing him into the intellectual person he is today.
I agree with Graffs arguments. In a functioning society it is important to have people
who are considered street smart, people with the ability to think for themselves and have an
opinion. While we should not undermine the value of academic intelligence, there needs to be
more of a balance of importance between book smarts and street smarts. A student who is able
to spew facts and solve math problems will likely find a job, but it is the student who is able to
form and defend an opinion that will become a key player in any work setting. A major factor
that contributes to intellectualism is someones situational awareness. In Scott Berkuns article,
Book Smarts vs. Street Smarts, Berkun discusses this situational awareness and what it means
to be street smart, he says those who are considered street smart, can assess the environment
you are in, who is in it, and what the available angles are. Another factor that contributes to
ones intellectualism is their experience. Someone who has been to different parts of the world
has a better sense of the people that they interact with making them more intellectual. At the end
of the day we as a society need to value intellectualism more highly than we do.

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