Is Dylan a Genius?
By zimmyz
@zimmyz (7)
Ireland
September 4, 2007 3:49am CST
I was watching a show last night about genius children ranging from ages 3 to 14. They all had IQ's of between 150 and 170. They all had different attributes of genius, one was really good at chess, another was a published author at age 11, another was suffering from depression at age 11 because his mind was so deep and philosophical he couldn't find a reason for his own existance and was therefore tormented. My wife and i agreed that we would not want that for our children, but the one trait they shared was, they knew they were genius!I have read many books on Dylan("Down the Highway is my favourite"), i have seen many documentaries on Dylan and he has never suggested that he was a genius. But surely someone who can write a song like Hard Rain at the age of 21 has to be a genius? Infact the new pope is quoted as saying he did not agree with Pope John Paul II appearing with Dylan at his 1997 concert in Bologna saying the Pope should not have taken the stage with this so called prophet. Surely only the idioms of a genius could ever be preceived as threatening to one of the oldest organised religions in the world. Dylan always explained it as simply finding away to tap into the collective unconscious, to take the songs that already exist in this dimension and "put them down". He truely believes this to be something anyone can do.
This theory has popped up with other artists such as John Lennon (Who couldn't understand why 5th Beatle Stuart Sutcliffe couldn't "just play" the bass). Also quoted as saying "If there is such thing as a genius then i am one, if not? Then i don't really care".
Bill Hicks supported this theory also (His Mantra: Cursed with vision). Great hicks quote: "Your denial is beneath you, but thanks to hallucinogenic drugs i see through you".
Maybe there is something different about artistic and academic genius, who knows.But i personally would rather be able to pen songs and poems even half as good as Dylan rather than be a world chess champion or a mathematics professor.
Any comments?
3 people like this
5 responses
@Rollo1 (16679)
• Boston, Massachusetts
12 Sep 07
Artists of any kind are geniuses in their own right, if not in the generally held conception of a genius. They are introspective and often depressed, sometimes genius bordering on insanity, sometimes only exhibiting itself in behaviour that is not commonly acceptable.
Dylan created a genre, but even today it would be impossible to define. The singer/songwriter/poet who began with protest songs, folk songs and protest against social ills, later to morph into a stream-of-consciousness poet/musician and no longer did we care that his voice was not polished or melodic, we knew only that his message was unique and one we strained to hear.
In the strict sense, those of extremely high IQ often have difficulty interacting in social relationships, but Dylan formed lasting bonds amongst his peers, musicians and artists like himself. It is a tribute to the man that he is not only well-respected by his peers, but that he recognizes the genius in them and returns that respect. Is he a genius? I don't know. He is the only one of his kind, and never will be another like him.
@wandawjone (4)
• United States
20 Sep 07
Of course Dylan is great writer of song and of life but please remember that we ALL have the ability to be genius in our own way. Dylan has a little more umph than most,I think he looks around and can really see the forest because he can see that the green things are the forest. He has the ability to go with the flow but still be able to swim to the other side. He is what we all aspire to be which is free,open to the world.
@honnasiri (30)
• India
28 Nov 07
in the strict sense of the word dylan may not be a genius but he has said and "discovered if you may" many things that we still and wonder at 48 years after he started singing his songs.
