Why there are no "geniuses" anymore

<p>Helen Lewis swung by JOETowers to chat if anyone is actually a genius - and what who we label "geniuses" tells us about society. </p><br /><p>She argues that "genius" is a romanticised idea: the notion that extraordinary talent excuses bad behaviour or moral failings. Think, Elon Musk. </p><br /><p>She unpacks how celebrated (almost always male) figures like Edison, Einstein, Picasso, Tolstoy (and even Elon Musk) benefit from a halo effect that glosses over serious flaws such as abuse, neglect, misogyny, and selfishness. </p><br /><p>She traces the historical roots of the term “genius,” linking it to hierarchy-driven ideologies and the eugenics movement, arguing that intelligence testing and the “innate talent” narrative come with harmful baggage. </p><br /><p>Helen Lewis is a journalist and staff writer at The Atlantic. She is a former deputy editor of the New Statesman, and has also written for The Guardian and The Sunday Times.</p><br /><p>Her new book "The Genius Myth" is out now. </p><p>Subscribe to How to Rebuild Britain now: https://linktr.ee/howtorebuildbritain</p><hr /><p style="color: grey; font-size: 0.75em;"> Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>