--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The intellect is a very nice whirligig…" description: "\"The intellect is a very nice whirligig toy, but how people take it seriously is more than I can understand.\" — Ezra Pound" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/ezra-pound-1208_i-can_the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-t_376085.png" --- # The intellect is a very nice whirligig toy, but how people… ![“The intellect is a very nice whirligig toy, but how people take it seriously is more than I can understand.” quote by Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/ezra-pound-1208_i-can_the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-t_376085.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/ezra-pound-1208_i-can_the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-t_376085.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/ezra-pound-1208_i-can_the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-t_376085.png) > “The intellect is a very nice whirligig toy, but how people take it seriously is more than I can understand.” [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intellect is a playful tool, yet people often misuse or overvalue it, leading to misunderstanding. **In simple terms:** Intellect is fun but often taken too seriously. Key Takeaway Use intellect wisely, not as a mere toy. Themes philosophy humor critique human nature Mood wry thoughtful Type satirical insightful When to use this quote - academic discourse - everyday conversations - education - media analysis Key Concepts intellectual humility social perception Questions to Reflect On - Why do people cling to rigid intellectualism? - How can humor soften serious discussions? A Different Perspective Intellectual play can be dismissed as frivolous. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Intellect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellect/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Toys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/toys/) ## Related quotes > [The more seriously we understand the radical nature of sin, the more it exercises a restraint upon us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/the-more-seriously-we-understand-the-radical-nature-of-sin-the-more/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [I was always trying to make up for my size, to compensate. So to get people to take you seriously, you have to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-hunt/i-was-always-trying-to-make-up-for-my-size-to-compensate-so-to-get/) [Linda Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-hunt/) > [Dyslexia is a hidden disability. Not many people take it seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-blades/dyslexia-is-a-hidden-disability-not-many-people-take-it-seriously/) [Jay Blades](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-blades/) > [“There are far too many people out there who take themselves too seriously.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-far-too-many-people-out-there-who-take-themselves-too/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [All that some actresses want is for people to take them seriously instead of caring about how they look. For me, Ive worked hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-cox/all-that-some-actresses-want-is-for-people-to-take-them-seriously/) [Nikki Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-cox/) > [We never take people seriously when they are alive, but once they are gone, we always think that we should have treated them better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-sethupathi/we-never-take-people-seriously-when-they-are-alive-but-once-they-are/) [Vijay Sethupathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-sethupathi/) > [Acting is a very limited form of expression and those who take it seriously are very limited people. I take it seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-holliday/acting-is-a-very-limited-form-of-expression-and-those-who-take-it/) [Judy Holliday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-holliday/) > [“ It's a ridiculous profession and it's getting worse. It's becoming almost like palm reading or phrenology. It's been relegated to pop best sellers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-shoales/it-s-a-ridiculous-profession-and-it-s-getting-worse-it-s-becoming/) [Ian Shoales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-shoales/) > [“You have to face serious people seriously. That's my policy. -Shohei to Yuichi”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satoru-kannagi/you-have-to-face-serious-people-seriously-that-s-my-policy-shohei-to/) [Satoru Kannagi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satoru-kannagi/) > [You have to work hard as a woman for people to take you seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mabel/you-have-to-work-hard-as-a-woman-for-people-to-take-you-seriously/) [Mabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mabel/) > [People seriously ask us all the time, 'Are you guys really brothers?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-jonas/people-seriously-ask-us-all-the-time-are-you-guys-really-brothers/) [Kevin Jonas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-jonas/) > [People who take themselves too seriously, who can't see anything else, are usually funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-guest/people-who-take-themselves-too-seriously-who-can-t-see-anything-else/) [Christopher Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-guest/) > [I'm fascinated by caddy Buddhists popping up all over Hollywood and people that take themselves too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-m-fascinated-by-caddy-buddhists-popping-up-all-over-hollywood-and/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I thought if I wanted people to take me seriously, I needed to act serious and not reveal too much of my private life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-corbett/i-thought-if-i-wanted-people-to-take-me-seriously-i-needed-to-act/) [John Corbett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-corbett/) > [I've learnt that you shouldn't take people seriously, whether they praise you or trash you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranveer-singh/i-ve-learnt-that-you-shouldn-t-take-people-seriously-whether-they/) [Ranveer Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranveer-singh/) ## More by Ezra Pound > [“I once saw a small child go to an electric light switch as say, "Mamma, can I open the light?" She was using the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/i-once-saw-a-small-child-go-to-an-electric-light-switch-as-say-mamma/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [“Till now they send him dreams and no more deed; So doth he flame again with might for action, Forgetful of the council of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/till-now-they-send-him-dreams-and-no-more-deed-so-doth-he-flame-again/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [A great age of literature is perhaps always a great age of translations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/a-great-age-of-literature-is-perhaps-always-a-great-age-of/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [It would be about as easy for an American to become a Chinaman or a Hindoo as for him to acquire an Englishness or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/it-would-be-about-as-easy-for-an-american-to-become-a-chinaman-or-a/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [Poets who are not interested in music are, or become, bad poets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/poets-who-are-not-interested-in-music-are-or-become-bad-poets/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [Anyone who is too lazy to master the comparatively small glossary necessary to understand Chaucer deserves to be shut out from the reading of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/anyone-who-is-too-lazy-to-master-the-comparatively-small-glossary/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [Mass ought to be in Latin, unless you could do it in Greek or Chinese. In fact, any abracadabra that no bloody member of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/mass-ought-to-be-in-latin-unless-you-could-do-it-in-greek-or-chinese/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [where the dead walked and the living were made of cardboard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/where-the-dead-walked-and-the-living-were-made-of-cardboard/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [Liberty is not a right but a duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/liberty-is-not-a-right-but-a-duty/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [The artist is always beginning. Any work of art which is not a beginning, an invention, a discovery is of little worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/the-artist-is-always-beginning-any-work-of-art-which-is-not-a/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [“Any general statement is like a cheque drawn on a bank. Its value depends on what is there to meet it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/any-general-statement-is-like-a-cheque-drawn-on-a-bank-its-value/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [The author's conviction on this day of New Year is that music begins to atrophy when it departs too far from the dance; that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/the-author-s-conviction-on-this-day-of-new-year-is-that-music-begins/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [In case I conk out, this is provisionally what I have to do: I must clarify obscurities; I must make clearer definite ideas or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/in-case-i-conk-out-this-is-provisionally-what-i-have-to-do-i-must/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [“Adolf Hitler was a Jeanne d'Arc, a saint. He was a martyr.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/adolf-hitler-was-a-jeanne-d-arc-a-saint-he-was-a-martyr/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [I could I trust starve like a gentleman. It's listed as part of the poetic training, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/i-could-i-trust-starve-like-a-gentleman-it-s-listed-as-part-of-the/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) [Explore all 273 Ezra Pound quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) ## More I can quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [My team mates are fundamental for my characteristics, if they send in crosses I can play inside the area.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/filippo-inzaghi/my-team-mates-are-fundamental-for-my-characteristics-if-they-send-in/) [Filippo Inzaghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/filippo-inzaghi/) > [I can skate beautifully. While performing on ice I always try to please the audience and to win as well. Being artistic is very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeni-plushenko/i-can-skate-beautifully-while-performing-on-ice-i-always-try-to/) [Evgeni Plushenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeni-plushenko/) > [I love playing for my country, getting the support. Especially for the kids and everybody, showing my example of what I can achieve so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-sharapova/i-love-playing-for-my-country-getting-the-support-especially-for-the/) [Maria Sharapova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-sharapova/) > [I always step on the plane with my right foot and touch the outside of the plane with my left hand. Sometimes you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-davis/i-always-step-on-the-plane-with-my-right-foot-and-touch-the-outside/) [Hope Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-davis/) > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I don't want to be famous famous. I'm happy on the second tier, where I have autonomy on a professional level but I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-reece/i-don-t-want-to-be-famous-famous-i-m-happy-on-the-second-tier-where-i/) [Gabrielle Reece](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-reece/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [From my experience of having served for 3000 days, I can say that anything can be achieved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/from-my-experience-of-having-served-for-3000-days-i-can-say-that/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [I take the responsibility of playing another ethnicity very, very seriously, and I promise myself and those people that I will represent them with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/i-take-the-responsibility-of-playing-another-ethnicity-very-very/) [Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [I'm Catholic and I can't commit suicide, but I plan to drink myself to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-catholic-and-i-can-t-commit-suicide-but-i-plan-to-drink-myself-to/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I remember my friend Johnny von Neumann used to say, 'with four parameters I can fit an elephant and with five I can make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enrico-fermi/i-remember-my-friend-johnny-von-neumann-used-to-say-with-four/) [Enrico Fermi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enrico-fermi/) > [I recognize I am essentially a failed human being in the sense that I can't possibly live up to the expectations of an Almighty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-recognize-i-am-essentially-a-failed-human-being-in-the-sense-that-i/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) Browse all 24,836 I can quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The intellect is a very nice whirligig toy, but how people take it seriously is more than I can understand.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ezra Pound" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-toy-but-how-people-take-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "I can" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-toy-but-how-people-take-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/ezra-pound-1208_i-can_the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-t_376085.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/ezra-pound-1208_i-can_the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-t_376085.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af9/ezra-pound-1208_i-can_the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-t_376085.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The intellect is a very nice whirligig toy, but how people take it seriously is more than I can understand.” — Ezra Pound", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ezra Pound", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The intellect is a very nice...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-toy-but-how-people-take-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/the-intellect-is-a-very-nice-whirligig-toy-but-how-people-take-it/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```