Mediocrity and Genius

 "Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself; but talent instantly recognizes genius . . . "

-- John H. Watson, The Valley of Fear 

That quote from Watson's introduction of Inspector MacDonald in The Valley of Fear has always stuck with me, even though I often forgetfully attribute it to Sherlock Holmes. It sounds so very much like Holmes, that one can be sure between listening to the man and quoting him, Watson could not help but pick up his friend's tone.

We tend to see a lot of mediocre minds who somehow think they are the standard for great intellect, especially in the personal bubbles that social media creates. Business enterprises are hamstrung again and again by dullards who somehow rise to a hiring position and staff with even duller dullards. But when Sherlock Holmes actually encouraged John Watson to return to 221B Baker Street when both men could well afford to pay rent on individual establishment . . . well, it's a pretty good sign that Watson was a little be brighter than the Nigel Bruce version of the character. (Who never seemed to marry, and thus never left 221B to provide an opportunity for a return, so Rathbone Holmes was pretty well stuck with him.)

The statement can even be a little bit humbling.

On those days when you definitely feel like the smartest person in the room, recalling that quote can make you step back and go, "Wait, am I just mediocre? I know of nothing higher than myself today!" In that little bit of self-check, one can feel a little bit of the Watson humility coming to the fore. 

Watson was constantly recognizing the genius of Sherlock Holmes, but never admitting to his own talent, which that quote would definitely assign to him. He does not suffer nearly so much as Antonio Salieri in the movie Amadeus, where the talented Salieri is constantly frustrated by the fact he can recognize Mozart's genius but never attain it himself.  The final scene of Amadeus, where Salieri is wheeled through the asylum absolving all the mediocre humans as the patron saint of mediocrity, would almost seem the climax of a story inspired by Watson's line. 

There are much deeper waters to John H. Watson than we often realize, and that one line from The Valley of Fear is, indeed, a valley worth thoughtfully gazing into.