Talent

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Date
1964
Summary
Mr. Hoffer argues that the men working beside him as longshoremen on the San Francisco docks are “lumpy with talent.” Genius, he notes, is not rare, it is wasted; and the talent of the workingman is a kind of common sense practicality. Wherever this talent exists among working men, they do their jobs without “all that fuss” which he considers to be characteristic of the underdeveloped countries of the world. Then, Mr. Hoffer raises a question regarding the forces that bring about creative periods in our history – periods that began quite suddenly and ended just as suddenly. He cites, as examples, “the period of cave drawings,” “the Age of Pericles,” “the Florence of the Renaissance,” and “the flowering of New England,” Mr. Hoffer contends that it was not because there was more talent during these periods (“the artists of Florence,” he notes, “were the sons of shopkeepers, and tailors.”), but rather that others forces which exist in every period of history were at work and these forces freed the talent.
Contributors
Eric Hoffer; James Day; Winifred Murphy; Bernie Stoffer; KQED, San Francisco
Publishers
National Educational Television; Indiana University Audio-Visual Center
Genres
Educational; Interview
Subject
Philosophy
Collection
National Educational Television
Unit
IUL Moving Image Archive
Language
English
Rights Statement
No Copyright - United States
Other Identifiers
Other: GR00466462; MDPI Barcode: 40000003113984; MDPI Barcode: 40000003113992

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