Do really intelligent, creative people have a hard time living within the majority? Are they often misunderstood and seen as an anomaly to society and appear anti-social and aloof?
by 
MRSHINYSHOES
ANSWERS: 15
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Yes. No. Most often I suppose. The hard part of being creative and intelligent is always having to lower oneself to the intelligence around one. That can be very frustrating. Imagine being the land of the blind and you can see everything and nobody else can, after a while you might be willing to gouge your own eyes out instead of struggling to convey what you SEE to everyone else. Or if that is not possible, then a very real distancing yourself from the rest of the blind would take place. Many creative/intelligent people purposefully (albeit unconsciously) disengage from the rest of society, pursue their own muse as it were and try not to step on the toes of those who happen to be around them. This is seen by outsiders as being "antisocial" which lends itself to further problems and frustrations.
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Intelligent people are the enemy. Never trust a creative person. You never know what an independent, self-sufficient, free person is going to do next.
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I don't like calling myself intelligent, because there's still a lot I don't know. But I am definitly creative, and i do have a hard time fitting in. A lot of people do compliment my creative abilities, yet they still don't quite understand me. It's as if they think all the time I spend on creative projects is unhealthy, because I'm doing that instead of going out and socialising. But i do feel the need to seperate myself from others in order to achieve what I'm setting out for. That doesn't mean I think I'm "too good" to be around other people (which is how it's often interpreted) but I just feel that if I adjust myself to fit in with a certain crowd, then it will mean abandoning my own personal ideas and interests. I just have to accept the fact that only a few people are likely to indentify with my creativity- it's not just a part of my life that I put away when i'm not using it, it's who I am.
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Yes, and yes!
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yes to a certain degree..
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I'm not certain that they have a hard time living within the majority..as much as the majority has a hard time accepting them.
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Mrshinyshoes, this is a great question. I believe your assumption is correct, it is frustrating to live within a society that most others appear to believe, act and think so much differently. People outside the norm are always looked at or treated like they have leprosy. The few people that don't fit into the mold are simply misfits.
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I know being different mainly involves misunderstanding and outright jealousy.
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I think people who are highly creative and intelligent have a hard time fitting into the "normal" population. Complicating this is that they often have complex personalities, and they are perceived by average people as being socially awkward, which they may well be. But the important thing to remember is these highly creative and intelligent people are all individuals, and even within this group you will have great variations, some who act just like "normal" people and some who get along well with the masses.
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Wow, what a question! I think sometimes the answer's yes they do. But.. then again.. maybe not. I dont know. I dont think im intelligent enough to answer this question with anything moree than this: Intelligent people are only intelligent because the people around them arent as intelligent as they are, therefore, they are considered a 'cut-above' the rest and, as a result may automatically be considered 'aloof' by the average Joe.
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YES
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I'm a mensan and I'm also half way through writing my first sci-fi futurist novel. I am currently experiencing the phenomenon of social leprosy on account of the fact I currenlty have no friends - as the word normally has inferences - job or much money at all. I get called very wonderful names from the passing cars of those who have had acquaintance with me. There's nothing I can do about it but I try not to look at them as looking at people gives them, and consequnetly their views, power. In answer to the question it's almost a cliche that most highly intelligent and highly creative people experience these things and, like all cliches, it's comprehensively accurate.
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It would depend on their social skills I imagine. Being intelligent and creative should not, in themselves be traits that should isolate a person. Great question.
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Yes, on both counts. It's like being a square peg trying to fit in a round hole. Although I get along with others, non-creative types just don't understand me. I'm both an artist and a writer - a double whammy. It's like I lack a 'social' gene. Not having that 'herd' mentality hasn't sat well with quite a few of my bosses, either.
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Yes I think it is really hard for really intelligent people to fit in our society. Many times they are misunderstood or mainly ignored because no one can understand them so they are left alone until the adopt the vices of the regular average joe.
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