Michelle Goepp wrote:
> My favorite is this: "In America, people who try to
> adhere to [the rules] run the risk of sounding
> pretentious or haughty."
which cause me to write:
>I was sure that line was going to end 'British' rather than 'pretentious
>or haughty'.
Sean Penney writes in response to me:
> I think it is a sad fact that in our schools kids who speak well, are
> good at math and answer questions in class are generally saddled with
> derogative labels - "brain, geek, nerd, etc".
At first read, it was difficult to see how Sean got from my statement
to his. I now assume he's reacting to Michelle and I just happened to
be the messenger.
There are certianly cases like the ones Sean describes, but they are
far from a general rule. There were some kids treated like that going
back at least 40 years (I raise my hand as example), but for every
example I can also think of a counter-example. In my graduating class
(1970), the co-valedictorians were also a cheerleader and starting left
guard on the football team. Neither exactly hid their light under a
bushel. I see current examples of both types in my son and daughters
high school classes.
So I wouldn't sweat it. More often than not, smart is respected. And
the situation hasn't changed in 40 years.
--
"Deconstruction is [when] a work is interpreted as a statement about itself,
using a literary version of the same cheap trick that Kurt Godel used to try
to frighten mathematicians back in the thirties." -- Chip Morningstar
in <http://www.dourish.com/goodies/decon.html>