There are some ideas so absurd that only an intellectual could believe them." - Meaning and context.">
Possibly a paraphrase of Bertrand Russell in My Philosophical Development (1959): "This is one of those views which are so absurd that only very learned men could possibly adopt them." It is similar in meaning to Orwell's line from Notes on Nationalism (1945): "One has to belong to the intelligentsia to believe things like that: no ordinary man could be such a fool." However, Russell was commenting not on politics, as Orwell was, but on some philosophers and their ideas about language.
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There are some ideas so absurd that only an intellectual could believe them.

— George Orwell

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "There are some ideas so absurd that only an intellectual could believe them." in the context of "Possibly a paraphrase of Bertrand Russell in My Philosophical Development (1959): "This is one of those views which are so absurd that only very learned men could possibly adopt them." It is similar in meaning to Orwell's line from Notes on Nationalism (1945): "One has to belong to the intelligentsia to believe things like that: no ordinary man could be such a fool." However, Russell was commenting not on politics, as Orwell was, but on some philosophers and their ideas about language." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "George Orwell" (Misattributed) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 28, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app

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#George Orwell#intellectual#believe#absurd#ideas
George Orwell

About George Orwell

George Orwell (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was the pen name of British novelist, essayist, and journalist Eric Arthur Blair, whose work is characterised by lucid prose, awareness of social injustice, opposition to totalitarianism, and strong support of democratic socialism.