It is very different whether a country or a society has a group of intellectuals. From Socrates to Bruno and Galileo, and even Voltaire and Hugo, they suffered death, suffering, and always being alone

It is very different whether a country or a society has a group of intellectuals. From Socrates to Bruno and Galileo, and even Voltaire and Hugo, they suffered death, suffering, and always being alone because they lacked such a collective. They are divided into several individuals and can only speak to society individually, so that they can also receive responses among similar people.

Revy, a well-known contemporary French writer, believes that in France, only starting from the Dreyfus incident did intellectuals have a considerable number; that is to say, there was not only one Zola at this time, But there is a "Zolas". "We are intellectuals! The party of intellectuals! There is a challenge and a compelling arrogance in this shout..." Lei Wei wrote in a book titled "The Adventure of Freedom": "This It was a way, a very bold way, to fly an almost insulting title as a flag.” Looking back at the Action for Knowledge, and the Manifesto of Intellectuals drafted by Clemenceau, in discussing the designation of “intellectuals.” , he regards the number of intellectuals as an important part, that is, as a standard. He wrote: "Hundreds of poets, painters, professors, who believe it is their duty to put down their pens or paintbrushes to comment on the affairs of the country, at the same time they have modified the word 'intellectuals' Meaning. Even those opponents, those who insulted Dreyfus and those supporters of national interests, along with the tide of the times, no longer remain silent or angry, no longer hide their anger and beliefs, facing The provocateurs, who no longer adhere to the tradition of academic silence and calmness, also use the same words, the same means of participation, and also form various alliances and associations. Is it a kind of imitation? Fanaticism? You can say it like this. But it can also be recorded like this: On the stage of thought, a new type of character appeared - just as the priests, scribes, sophists and polymaths marked other eras, they were also new and specific. Sexual." This fresh and specific group is modern intellectuals. What he means is that intellectuals in the true sense can only appear in modern times.

Indeed, intellectuals and modern democratic society are mutually reinforcing and interactive. On the other hand, if a decent group of intellectuals has not been produced, such a society can only be called a pre-modern society; the passage of time cannot bring about substantive changes to it, it just adds a bit of new century paint.