By Sunil Kumar
Very interesting question. Intellectuals wield a lot of influence over society because of the power of their ideas. The more original and the more insightful the better. The staying power of intellectual ideas is primarily due to their memorability and applicability in my opinion.
Shaw for example was known for his acerbic humour, wit and satire. Another point is the human connect- how many people can you impact with your existence. Adi Shankaracharya in India is believed to have composed many works of genius and you can still see his influence after more than a millennium. Why for example did China hunt down intellectuals in its cultural revolution? I think they wanted a conformist society that did not have dissent and the power of ideas bringing about disruption, thereby stifling progress and the natural genius of its people.
You also have to give credit to the power of ideas and creativity. This is the main thing that transforms human society leading in progress- both material and spiritual. Guess since we are all focused on the material paradigm, intellectuals can also lead us to a dark path to infinite malaise and misery. So, in short I think the charisma, force of their ideas and opinions and sometimes also a gullible population that does not indulge in critical thinking on its own leads to intellectuals wielding so much influence over society.
