Bonhoeffer’s “theory of stupidity”

We have more to fear from stupid people than evil ones.

Adapted from Jonny Thomson

https://bigthink.com/thinking/bonhoeffers-theory-stupidity-evil/

“Debating an idiot is like trying to play chess with a pigeon — it knocks the pieces over, craps on the board, and flies back to its flock to claim victory.” 

It’s funny and astute. It’s also deeply, depressingly worrying. Although we’d never say so, we all have people in our lives we think of as a bit dim — not necessarily about everything, but certainly about some things.

For theologian and philosopher Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the stupid person is often more dangerous than the evil one. He said,

“One may protest against evil; it can be exposed and, if need be, prevented by use of force. Evil always carries within itself the germ of its own subversion.”

 

The enemy within

We have obvious villains — the dictators who violate human rights or serial killers and violent criminals. As evil as these people are, they are not the biggest threat, since they are known. Once something is a known evil, the good of the world can rally to defend and fight against it.

Stupidity, though, is a different problem altogether. We cannot so easily fight stupidity for two reasons. 

• First, we are collectively much more tolerant of it. Unlike evil, stupidity is not a vice most of us take seriously. We do not lambast others for ignorance. We do not scream down people for not knowing things. 
• Second, the stupid person is a slippery opponent. They will not be beaten by debate or open to reason. When the stupid person has their back against the wall — when they’re confronted with facts that cannot be refuted — they snap and lash out.

Bonhoeffer puts it like this:

“Neither protests nor the use of force accomplish anything here; reasons fall on deaf ears; facts that contradict one’s prejudgment simply need not be believed — in such moments the stupid person even becomes critical — and when facts are irrefutable, they are just pushed aside as inconsequential, as incidental. In all this the stupid person, in contrast to the malicious one, is utterly self-satisfied and, being easily irritated, becomes dangerous by going on the attack.”

Stupidity, like evil, is no threat as long as it hasn’t got power. 

The problem with stupidity, though, is that it often goes hand-in-hand with power. Bonhoeffer wrote, 

“Upon closer observation, it becomes apparent that every strong upsurge of power in the public sphere, be it of a political or of a religious nature, infects a large part of humankind with stupidity.”

Stupidity does not disbar anyone from holding office or authority. History and politics are swimming with examples of when the stupid have risen to the top (and where the smart are excluded or killed). The nature of power requires that people surrender certain faculties necessary for intelligent thought — faculties like independence, critical thinking, and reflection.

Bonhoeffer’s argument is that the more someone becomes part of the establishment, the less an individual they become. A charismatic, exciting outsider, bursting with intelligence and sensible policies, becomes imbecilic the moment he takes office. It’s as if, “slogans, catchwords and the like… have taken possession of him. He is under a spell, blinded, misused, and abused in his very being.”

When people join a political party, most seem to choose to follow suit rather than think things through. Power drains the intelligence from a person.

Stupidity has far greater potential to damage our lives

Bonhoeffer argues that stupidity should be viewed as worse than evil. More harm is done by one powerful idiot than a gang of Machiavellian schemers. We know when there’s evil, and we can deny it power. With the corrupt, oppressive, and sadistic, we know where we stand.

We should get angry and scared when stupidity takes reign. It is much harder to weed out. It’s a dangerous weapon. Stupid people are needed to do evil. A stupid person can be guided, steered, and manipulated to do any number of things. 

Evil people find it hard to take power. They nothing so much as the mindless puppets who enable it — be they in the general public or inside the corridors of power.

Jonny Thomson teaches philosophy in Oxford. He runs a popular account called Mini Philosophy and his first book is Mini Philosophy: A Small Book of Big Ideas.