ABSTRACT

Psychological explanations of originality are not the only pertinent ones, but they do have their place. Perhaps the most obvious characteristic of the original thinker is his dedication to work. The quality which one seems to find most often in the successful scientist, and the original thinker more generally, is his adventurousness. In his work at least, he is a swashbuckler. The chapter discusses the buccaneering which has a number of components, of which three: self-confidence, aggressiveness, and a taste for risks. Almost everything that has ever been written about original thinkers emphasizes their assurance. The circumstances which give boy self-confidence also allow him a certain independence from external standards of value. Self-confidence is necessary for originality, but is not in itself sufficient. Hundreds of thousands of men have unbounded self-confidence without being intellectually or artistically successful: cranks, eccentrics, and others besides.