Extreme wit and charm often go hand in hand, and this is enhanced even more when we’re talking about a romanticized version of the bearer of those qualities. People never cease to be fascinated with fictional characters which embody intellectual greatness. Each remarkable character has its own huge fan base. We previously shared with you a list of the most loved fictional detectives in books and movies. That post covered the public’s swooning over those figures. Things are pretty much the same the fictional geniuses in popular culture. Today we’ll present to you a short account about 5 brainy characters who are Fictional Geniuses in Popular Culture.
1. Mr. Spock
The brilliant Vulcan part of Enterprise’s crew routinely wins any logical argument with anyone. He finds solutions to almost every problem intuitively. Also, while being (or pretending to be) emotionless, we find his social awkwardness charming and his kindness touching. Also, he’s hot – somewhat of an elf precursor. Those pointy ears and the discourse about balance in nature and stuff. The list of fictional geniuses in popular culture couldn’t start with anyone but him. If you weren’t touched when he died, then maybe this list is not for you. Just kidding!
2. Hannibal Lecter
In this case, the fascination we feel for this brilliant fellow is a bit on the morbid side. But, we can’t help it. Whether the portrayal is done by Sir Anthony Hopkins in the movies, or by Mads Mikkelsen in the TV series, we can’t get enough of the profiler, psychiatrist, culinary genius and cannibalistic serial killer. His many facets make him perhaps the most complex character of the fictional geniuses list. His undying interest for Clarice (in the movies) gives him the human touch that helps us romanticize his character a bit.
3. Dr. Temperance “Bones” Brennan
We’re still in the field of forensics with this one: the lovable character in the Bones TV series is a forensic anthropologist capable of reconstructing a person’s appearance and life just from a handful of bones. Hence the nickname. She’s also wonderfully feminine and fragile, despite her belonging in the circle of the greatest fictional geniuses in today’s popular culture. Also, she’s an anthropologist. Female anthropologists completely rule! Trust us.
4. Dr. Gregory House
This tormented genius figure is also the kind with multiple facets. He has a complexly written human side, and a partial isolation from the world to contribute to his aura. Also, his trademark sarcasm and witty comments, paired with a chronic pain disorder, somehow make us swoon over him even more.
5. Hermione Granger
This list of the most loved fictional geniuses couldn’t be complete without Hermione Granger. She is the brilliant and study-loving witch of the Harry potter series. Not only is she played by the charming Emma Watson, but she basically represents a symbol and an inspiration to smart women everywhere who fight to make their way through the world. She was born to Muggle parents. She had to fight her way to have her talents recognized. Sometimes she’s a total nerd which even her friends make fun of. But, she’s also witty, responsive, charming, and the most courageous of her group.
It’s also been argued that the movie industry’s fascination with geniuses often casts a false light on what very intelligent real people are like, and makes the viewers believe that inspiration or the solution to a problem just come spontaneously to such gifted people. The downside to this kind of portrayal is that, while it’s easy to just picture fictional geniuses as being almost mystically endowed with wit, this minimizes the role of hard work from the equation. Fictional brainiacs seem to speak 12 languages fluently, do their job brilliantly and also play a musical instrument or have some otherwise interesting hobby in addition to all that, with almost no effort shown. We agree that this is probably not very healthy for the rest of us, but we can’t help being fascinated with these fictional geniuses all the same. (Also, there are always wonderful exceptions like Hermione who actually do work very hard.) Stay tuned for part two of this list, coming in the next few days.