This quote by Arthur Schopenhauer: “Men of very great capacity, will as a rule, find the company of very stupid people preferable to that of the common run; for the same reason that the tyrant and the mob, the grandfather and the grandchildren, are natural allies.”

Question

This makes sense to me, but I can’t put into words exactly why it makes sense. Could someone please put it into words?

In: Other

Answer 1

I think most are misinterpreting this. It is that the groups are different enough to have affection for each other rather than competition. The other groups are vying for power and therefore in conflict. The tyrants power actually comes from the mob at the expense of the middle and aristocracy. A grand parent can often be more indulgent and close than a parent who has to maintain authority. The really intelligent often face push back from the fairly intelligent whereas the un intelligent might just want to talk about the weather, they can talk about shared things without conflict. It’s closer to opposites attract than power dynamics.