--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was anti-intellectual to the nth…" description: "\"I was anti-intellectual to the nth. Basically I liked to dance and paint, and that was about it.\" — Joni Mitchell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/joni-mitchell-1160_intellectual_i-was-anti-intellectual-to-the-nth-basic_1384164.png" --- # I was anti-intellectual to the nth. Basically I liked to… ![“I was anti-intellectual to the nth. Basically I liked to dance and paint, and that was about it.” quote by Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/joni-mitchell-1160_intellectual_i-was-anti-intellectual-to-the-nth-basic_1384164.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/joni-mitchell-1160_intellectual_i-was-anti-intellectual-to-the-nth-basic_1384164.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/890/joni-mitchell-1160_intellectual_i-was-anti-intellectual-to-the-nth-basic_1384164.png) > “I was anti-intellectual to the nth. Basically I liked to dance and paint, and that was about it.” [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rejecting intellectual pursuits can limit growth; balance creativity with curiosity. **In simple terms:** Being anti‑intellectual limits learning. Key Takeaway Embrace curiosity alongside art. Themes creativity intellectualism balance Mood thoughtful inspired Type advice motivational When to use this quote - career choices - education - personal growth Key Concepts personal development artistic expression Questions to Reflect On - What would you learn if you explored ideas? - How can curiosity improve your art? A Different Perspective Intellectualism enriches artistic work, not hinders it. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anti Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anti-intellectual-304118/) [Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual/) [Intellectual Nth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual-nth-4804944/) [Liked Dance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liked-dance-708253/) [Nth Basically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nth-basically-4804945/) [Paint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paint/) ## Related quotes > [It only takes a day to change someone from an anti-intellectual to an intellectual by persuading him that he might be one!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-land/it-only-takes-a-day-to-change-someone-from-an-anti-intellectual-to-an/) [Edwin Land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-land/) > [I've always liked to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-freedia/i-ve-always-liked-to-dance/) [Big Freedia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-freedia/) > [I've always liked to dance - I've got a natural rhythm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-jones/i-ve-always-liked-to-dance-i-ve-got-a-natural-rhythm/) [Tom Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-jones/) > [“The music came back up and the next group of little girls, slightly older, came out. And there was a lot of that in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/the-music-came-back-up-and-the-next-group-of-little-girls-slightly/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [I liked to dance in rain because no one knows that I am crying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason/i-liked-to-dance-in-rain-because-no-one-knows-that-i-am-crying/) [Jason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason/) > [“Once upon a time she had liked to dance. When she had been about the same age as the little brunette out there who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-mccarthy/once-upon-a-time-she-had-liked-to-dance-when-she-had-been-about-the/) [Erin McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-mccarthy/) > [I never liked dance photography; it's very flat, and dance photography in the studio looks very contrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-baryshnikov/i-never-liked-dance-photography-it-s-very-flat-and-dance-photography/) [Mikhail Baryshnikov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-baryshnikov/) > [“I didn’t know you liked to dance,” she said. “I don’t. It gives me an excuse to hold you close without getting disapproving looks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-covington/i-didn-t-know-you-liked-to-dance-she-said-i-don-t-it-gives-me-an/) [Robin Covington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-covington/) > [“Ben told me when I was in middle school that girls loved boys who liked to dance. I can’t lie. I totally started dancing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-dane/ben-told-me-when-i-was-in-middle-school-that-girls-loved-boys-who/) [Lauren Dane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-dane/) > [I was called a bookish child. Mother sent me to a ballet teacher in Cincinnati when I was nine years old. I guess I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-ellen/i-was-called-a-bookish-child-mother-sent-me-to-a-ballet-teacher-in/) [Vera-Ellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-ellen/) > [“Anti-intellectual resentment is common in all of American life and it has many diverse expressions. Refusing to draft college players might have been one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/anti-intellectual-resentment-is-common-in-all-of-american-life-and-it/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [The species of anti-Enlightenment religion we find among evangelical protestants is far more impoverished, anti-intellectual and downright wretched.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-w-wood/the-species-of-anti-enlightenment-religion-we-find-among-evangelical/) [Allen W. Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-w-wood/) > [We live in what may be the most anti-intellectual period in the history of Western civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/we-live-in-what-may-be-the-most-anti-intellectual-period-in-the/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [Americans are genuinely and profoundly anti-intellectual. They are especially so in their pleasure-seeking, which is epically banal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ball/americans-are-genuinely-and-profoundly-anti-intellectual-they-are/) [Jesse Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ball/) > [I'm not interested in the fact that a writer may label himself as being intellectual or anti-intellectual. l'm really interested in the stuff he's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-m-not-interested-in-the-fact-that-a-writer-may-label-himself-as/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) ## More by Joni Mitchell > [They paved paradise and put up a parkin lot With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swingin' hot spot Don't it always seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/they-paved-paradise-and-put-up-a-parkin-lot-with-a-pink-hotel-a/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [And the seasons they go 'round and 'round And the painted ponies go up and down We're captive on the carousel of time We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/and-the-seasons-they-go-round-and-round-and-the-painted-ponies-go-up/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [Abstract Expressionism was invented by New York drunks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/abstract-expressionism-was-invented-by-new-york-drunks/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [I have one piece of music, since 1997, and I don't see it having lyrics. Where does it go in this world? So I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/i-have-one-piece-of-music-since-1997-and-i-don-t-see-it-having-lyrics/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [Musically, I would never run dry. Any time I sit down to an instrument, I could write a song.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/musically-i-would-never-run-dry-any-time-i-sit-down-to-an-instrument/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [You snipe so steady, you snub so snide, so rip and ready to diminish and deride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/you-snipe-so-steady-you-snub-so-snide-so-rip-and-ready-to-diminish/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [I loved Debussy, Stravinsky, Chopin, Tchaikovsky, anything with romantic melodies, especially the nocturnes. Nietzsche was a hero, especially with 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra.' He gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/i-loved-debussy-stravinsky-chopin-tchaikovsky-anything-with-romantic/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [When the spirit of child's play enters into the creative process, it's a wonderful force and something to be nurtured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/when-the-spirit-of-child-s-play-enters-into-the-creative-process-it-s/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [Americans have decided to be stupid and shallow since 1980.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/americans-have-decided-to-be-stupid-and-shallow-since-1980/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [I was young for my age. Not as naïve as they expected. I don't know why I seem to bring that out in people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/i-was-young-for-my-age-not-as-na-ve-as-they-expected-i-don-t-know-why/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [This is a nation that has lost the ability to be self-critical, and that makes a lie out of the freedoms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/this-is-a-nation-that-has-lost-the-ability-to-be-self-critical-and/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [Land of snap decisions, land of short attention spans, nothing is savored long enough to really understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/land-of-snap-decisions-land-of-short-attention-spans-nothing-is/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [I like my freedom. I like to do my own grocery shopping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/i-like-my-freedom-i-like-to-do-my-own-grocery-shopping/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [I'm not a pitiable creature. It's just that I suffer very eloquently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/i-m-not-a-pitiable-creature-it-s-just-that-i-suffer-very-eloquently/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [I can't remember anything I ever wrote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/i-can-t-remember-anything-i-ever-wrote/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) [Explore all 281 Joni Mitchell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) ## More Intellectual quotes > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [I am convinced that we will never build a democratic state based on rule of law if we do not at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/i-am-convinced-that-we-will-never-build-a-democratic-state-based-on/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [Today it is the skeptics who are the social conformists, though because of powerful intellectual propaganda they continue to enjoy thinking of themselves as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/today-it-is-the-skeptics-who-are-the-social-conformists-though/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [Love isn't intellectual - it's visceral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-mcgillis/love-isn-t-intellectual-it-s-visceral/) [Kelly McGillis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-mcgillis/) > [Faith is the avenue to salvation. Not intellectual understanding. Not money. Not your works. Just simple faith. How much faith? The faith of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/faith-is-the-avenue-to-salvation-not-intellectual-understanding-not/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [Laughter is one of the great beacons in life because we don't refract it by gunning it through our intellectual prism. What makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/laughter-is-one-of-the-great-beacons-in-life-because-we-don-t-refract/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [Unfortunately, moral beauty in art - like physical beauty in a person - is extremely perishable. It is nowhere so durable as artistic or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/unfortunately-moral-beauty-in-art-like-physical-beauty-in-a-person-is/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [ \[Our understanding is\] not intellectual, but instinctive. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-richards/our-understanding-is-not-intellectual-but-instinctive/) [Ann Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-richards/) > [Ideal for the child and society in the best of times, Rudolf Steiner's brilliant process of education is critically needed and profoundly relevant now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-chilton-pearce/ideal-for-the-child-and-society-in-the-best-of-times-rudolf-steiner-s/) [Joseph Chilton Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-chilton-pearce/) > [It only takes a day to change someone from an anti-intellectual to an intellectual by persuading him that he might be one!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-land/it-only-takes-a-day-to-change-someone-from-an-anti-intellectual-to-an/) [Edwin Land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-land/) > [Our guiding principle was that design is neither an intellectual nor a material affair, but simply an integral part of the stuff of life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-gropius/our-guiding-principle-was-that-design-is-neither-an-intellectual-nor/) [Walter Gropius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-gropius/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. 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