Genius and Villainy: Are They Compatible?
Usually genius is a synonym of positive qualities that lead the mankind to progress and every human wants to be an outstanding personality. Villain is an antipode that has a variety of negative qualities that are distracting for many human beings and are satisfying his vain intentions. Is it simple enough as it seems?
The main question has arisen after reading one quotation that at first sight seems to be words of a kind and throughly spiritual person.
Secular schools can never be tolerated because such a school has no religious instruction and a general moral instruction without a religious foundation is built on air; consequently, all character training and religion must be derived from faith . . . We need believing people.
Adolf Hitler
It’s interesting that a recognized villain could speak about faith and morality in that way. The literature gave answers that Hitler had genius qualities in some fields. For example, Hitler is only one politics in the history that has fulfilled all campaign promises after coming to authority in 1933: he solved the unemployment problem with running a military industry; democrats, communists and homosexuals were crashed with repressions; improved public health and increased birth rate. Directed his aryans to the path of a superhumans: healthy lifestyle, sports and radio performances. Also he was a great orator. He improved his inborn skill by taking lessons from professional actors. It has been known that a voice tone, impulsiveness and logical way of phrases may be a good brainwash for people. But the way Hitler prepared to his speech shows his extraordinary mind.
Hitler dictated his speech “at one go” directly to the typist. According to eyewitnesses, he dictated delayed until the last minute. Before long dictation went back and forth, and then began to dictate – in fact, a speech – with flashes of anger, gestures and all the trappings of a man absorbed in the idea. Two secretaries hardly had time to write. Later, he worked for several hours, correcting typed text. But as a teenager he wanted to become a painter and wrote librettos, plays, poems, although parents dreamed of seeing it official. Of course, short-tempered, unbalanced, very stubborn and headstrong character manifested in childhood and throughout his life halfway around the world were able to see this. But such features often endowed with brilliant people. So can we have the right to name this villain is also a genius? Villainous genius.
Now, in contrast, look at the famous humanist and ardent fighter for human rights, the Soviet physicist, considered one of the founders of the hydrogen bomb – Andrei Sakharov. In childhood he learned very well. Many physical and mathematical questions he solved with unconventional and intuitive methods – he could not explain how he came to the right decision. (…)