"When a true idiot appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that even the dunces are all in confederacy against him".
While the original quote makes an interesting point that genius is often not recognized, and even hated by those who don't understand it, I don't think looking to the "dunces" is a good method for judging genius.
Well, it's a necessary, but not a sufficient condition. All geniuses are conspired against by the dunces, but sometimes the dunces conspire against another dunce. Makes it fair.:)
I was also going to mention that it is often "proved" that Ayn Rand is not be a genius because so many of the "dunces" agree with her. It's the same premise. If she were a genius, common people shouldn't understand her or approve of her. They should conspire against her. Since in fact a whole lot of them do like her, it's supposed to show that she isn't a genius, and is in fact "too simplistic".
When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him.
