We are living, it may be said, in a golden age of stupidity. Mindless voters elect boneheaded, lying politicians who work against their interests. Social media influencers corrupt witless followers with conspiracy theories, and promote foolish takedowns of scientific expertise - all on their smart phones, of course!
Journalist and author Stuart Jeffries analyzes how we got here. Are the stupid, like the poor, always with us? Or, is stupidity like Japanese knotweed---difficult to root out, and requiring extermination with extreme prejudice?
What do some of our great minds — Socrates, Buddha, Voltaire, Arendt — say about stupidity's slippery nature? From ancient Greece to artificial intelligence, we'll meet heroes of stupidity including Flaubert's double act: Bouvard and Pécuchet. We will cast skeptical eyes on IQ tests, eugenics, gene editing, and racist education policies.
Is each attempt to root out stupidity more stupid than the stupidity it was devised to eradicate?
Please come and help us to respectfully investigate whether our species can learn anything from its rich history of folly.
DATE WEEK PAGES CHAPTERS
(Hour 1) and (Hour 2) NOTE: "(---partial Chapters---)"
09/01 ONE (1-21) and (22-39) Introduction / (Ch 1) What Is Stupidity / (Ch 2---) Ancient Stupidity
09/08 TWO (39-60) and (61-80) (---Ch 2) Ancient Stupidity / (Ch 3---) Eastern Stupidity
09/15 THREE (80-98) and (98-116) (---Ch 3) Eastern Stupidity / (Ch 4) The Value of Folly
09/22 FOUR (117-136) and (136-159) (Ch 5) Modern Stupidity / (Ch 6---) Stupid Eugenics
09/29 FIVE (159-183) and (183-205) (---Ch 6) Stupid Eugenics / (Ch 7---) Stupid Intelligence
10/06 SIX (205-225) and (226-246) (---Ch 7) Stupid Intelligence / (Ch 8) Mass Stupidity / (Ch 9---) Structural Stupidity
10/13 SEVEN (246-267) and (267-287) (---Ch 9) Structural Stupidity / (Ch 10) Digital Stupidity / Conclusion
Jeffries, Stuart. A Short History of Stupidity. Wiley, 2025