2008 Woodie Awards
Not to Ask a Stupid Question . . .
Esi Cleland
Issue date: 2/3/05 Section: Opinion
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I often hear students preface their questions with the phrase: "this is a stupid question but ...," or some other variation of it. Examples include but are not limited to: "This may seem silly but ...," "this is irrelevant but ...," "I have a foolish question ...," "this may be a stupid question but ...," A slightly different but related phrase is "my paper sucks," "my proposal is shit." The interesting thing is that I have never heard a man utter those string of words. But I am a bad one to judge, having attended an all girls' high school and proceeded to Smith. Anyway, whether men say this or not is of no concern to me. What bothers me is that Smith women say it, and I wonder why. Do we ever consider the implications of using such language? Are the questions really stupid? Or are we simply bad at articulating our questions? Do we merely do it out of habit? Is there a way to quit?
Considering that Smith is a prestigious, highly selective college that boasts women of high academic achievement, it is a wonder that we hear these phrases so often here. One Smith brochure reports that 90 percent of Smith graduating seniors confirm that they felt more confident of their abilities after receiving a Smith education. That must count for something. If it does, then may I say that I am tired of sitting in the classroom with people who preface their questions with such statements as outlined above?
Perhaps professors also share my frustration and that is why I have heard professors respond several times by saying "There are no stupid questions." While I disagree with such professors on the assertion that no question is stupid, I do agree with them if what they mean is that usually what follows after that statement is a completely legitimate question.
What, then, qualifies as a stupid question? Dictionary.com defines the word stupid as: "lacking or marked by lack of intellectual acuity." By extension, a stupid question would then be an interrogative sentence or phrase that lacks quickness of perception or intellect. In my search to find examples of truly stupid questions, one which I will borrow from Daniel M., is "Exactly where is the road less traveled"? This question is stupid because if you are old and smart enough to read Frost, then the world does not expect such a question from you.
Considering that Smith is a prestigious, highly selective college that boasts women of high academic achievement, it is a wonder that we hear these phrases so often here. One Smith brochure reports that 90 percent of Smith graduating seniors confirm that they felt more confident of their abilities after receiving a Smith education. That must count for something. If it does, then may I say that I am tired of sitting in the classroom with people who preface their questions with such statements as outlined above?
Perhaps professors also share my frustration and that is why I have heard professors respond several times by saying "There are no stupid questions." While I disagree with such professors on the assertion that no question is stupid, I do agree with them if what they mean is that usually what follows after that statement is a completely legitimate question.
What, then, qualifies as a stupid question? Dictionary.com defines the word stupid as: "lacking or marked by lack of intellectual acuity." By extension, a stupid question would then be an interrogative sentence or phrase that lacks quickness of perception or intellect. In my search to find examples of truly stupid questions, one which I will borrow from Daniel M., is "Exactly where is the road less traveled"? This question is stupid because if you are old and smart enough to read Frost, then the world does not expect such a question from you.