In Paradise Lost Milton speaks of Lucifer’s intelligence as being of the highest order. All through the writings of Shakespeare and Charles Dickens the good guys are usually portrayed as being a bit simple while the wicked, clever, conniving characters are intellectually bright. The hero is usually a dufus who is rescued by some quirk of fate or God’s intervention.
I would like to register my complaint. In Matthew 22 and 23 when Jesus does intellectual battle with the finest minds of His day Jesus bests them every time. Paul was surely one of the most intelligent men who ever lived. Romans and Galatians are testimonies to that. Daniel and his three friends were tested by Nebuchadnezzar and found to be ten times intellectually superior to all the other students. See Daniel 1:20. God defeats Satan in the Book of Job. God wins in the book of Revelation.
Maybe this literary tendency exists because we cannot write plots with a scheming good guy. We equate secret plans with clever twists as being diabolical. Maybe it has something to do with always telling the truth. What the world needs is a literary hero who is smart, clever, bright, kind and scheming while being brilliant enough to do it without ever telling a lie. Now that would take some writing. Hopefully someone who reads this will take up the challenge and give the world a really smart good guy.
Written by Roger Bothwell on April 3, 2009
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
rogerbothwell.org