“Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.” I chose this quote because it really rings true to me. Someone can have all the knowledge in the world, but if they don’t use it or if they use it in the wrong way, it doesn’t serve a purpose.
This essay is important because it points out that it is not enough to just learn, we have to apply our knowledge to determine right from wrong. I think Martin Luther King Jr.’s thesis was to express that intelligence alone is not enough. We need to use it to develop values to judge our own actions. He showed this by giving the example of Eugene Talmadge. In Mr. King’s opinion, Mr. Talmadge possessed one of the better minds of Georgia, he wore the Phi Beta Kappa key. That being said, Mr. Talmadge still contended that Mr. King was an inferior being and opposed the civil rights movement. This is a perfect example of someone who definitely has the ability to think critically and intensively, but cannot apply that to his own life.
I think that MLK also meant that if you have an education you have the ability to discover what is right. He states that altough people have educations they do not use the ability decide for themselves.
I agree. Everyone has the chance to be smart by either working hard or just having that trait but it all depends on how the person uses it.