has to see a great deal of other people who are not of like character
with himself, they will exercise a disturbing influence upon him,
adverse to his peace of mind; they will rob him, in fact, of himself,
and give him nothing to compensate for the loss.

But while Nature sets very wide differences between man and man in
respect both of morality and of intellect, society disregards and
effaces them; or, rather, it sets up artificial differences in
their stead,--gradations of rank and position, which are very often
diametrically opposed to those which Nature establishes. The result of
this arrangement is to elevate those whom Nature has placed low,
and to depress the few who stand high. These latter, then, usually
withdraw from society, where, as soon as it is at all numerous,
vulgarity reigns supreme.

What offends a great intellect in society is the equality of rights,
leading to equality of pretensions, which everyone enjoys; while at
the same time, inequality of capacity means a corresponding disparity
of social power. So-called _good society_ recognizes every kind of
claim but that of intellect, which is a contraband article; and people
are expected to exhibit an unlimited amount of patience towards every
form of folly and stupidity, perversity and dullness; whilst personal
merit has to beg pardon, as it were, for being present, or else
conceal itself altogether. Intellectual superiority offends by its
very existence, without any desire to do so.

The worst of what is called good society is not only that it offers us
the companionship of people who are unable to win either our praise or
our affection, but that it does not allow of our being that which we
naturally are; it compels us, for the sake of harmony, to shrivel up,