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“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do. He may as well concern himself with his shadow on the wall. Speak what you think now in hard words, and to-morrow speak what to-morrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict every thing you said to-day. — ‘Ah, so you shall be sure to be misunderstood.’ — Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
The Courage of Inconsistency: A Meditation on Emerson’s Wisdom
Ralph Waldo Emerson, the eminent 19th-century American philosopher and essayist, penned a line of extraordinary insight: “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.” In this aphorism, Emerson captures the profound tension between the human penchant for consistency and the often contradictory nature of profound wisdom. He urges us to question the societal veneration of consistency, a trait commonly equated with reliability, integrity, and sound judgment.
The Tyranny of Consistency
First, let us dissect the notion of consistency that Emerson so ardently critiques. In the realms of politics, philosophy, and religion—the domains of statesmen, philosophers, and divines—consistency is often considered a virtue. It is seen as a marker of a clear, unwavering vision or a sound, unchangeable moral compass. However, what if this unyielding consistency, rather than being a mark of intellectual rigor or ethical fortitude, is actually an intellectual straitjacket?
In its most pernicious form, consistency can stifle growth, quash intellectual curiosity, and suppress the nuances and complexities that characterize the human experience. It is the banal consistency of dogmas and orthodoxies that Emerson challenges, for they can lead to stagnation and a lack of creativity, hindering the progress of thought and spirit.
The Realm of Great Souls
Emerson’s “great soul,” unburdened by the need for foolish consistency, is free to engage with the world in its full complexity. Such an individual is unafraid to embrace contradiction and paradox, recognizing that today’s wisdom may be tomorrow’s folly. The great soul lives in a dynamic relationship with the world, always willing to reevaluate and adjust one’s opinions in light of new evidence or deeper understanding.
But what of the risk of being misunderstood? Emerson argues that misunderstanding is the handmaiden of greatness. The pantheon of the misunderstood—Pythagoras, Socrates, Jesus, Luther, Copernicus, Galileo, Newton—demonstrates that societal misunderstanding is often a byproduct of revolutionary thought. These figures were outliers because they broke free from the limiting orthodoxy of their times, and in doing so, they were often misjudged, maligned, and even persecuted. Yet their impact was transformative; they were the catalysts of paradigm shifts in thought and belief.
The Dialectic of Misunderstanding
To be misunderstood is not merely an occupational hazard of greatness; it is almost a requirement. It is through the dialectic of misunderstanding that new ideas are tested, refined, and ultimately accepted or rejected. If one is never misunderstood, it could very well mean that one is simply echoing the prevailing wisdom, adding nothing new to the conversation of mankind.
The Courage to Be Inconsistent
Emerson’s critique of “foolish consistency” is a call for intellectual bravery—the courage to be inconsistent, to contradict oneself, and to risk being misunderstood. It is an invitation to engage in a living dialogue with the world, rather than entombing oneself in the mausoleum of static ideas.
In a world that often seeks to reduce complex issues to simplistic binaries, Emerson’s wisdom offers a refreshing counterpoint. To be great is not to be consistently right but to be courageously open—to learn, to change, and to make one’s way through the labyrinthine complexities of human existence with an open mind and an adaptable spirit. To be great, then, is to embrace the liberating freedom of thoughtful inconsistency.