We all know those little short snippets of wisdom. They're often witty, insightful, or hilariously stupid. Some are anonymous and are passed down through generations, while others are random quotable moments coming from someone who happened to say something catchy. And some people actually write them, often making a book of their aphorisms, like Ben Franklin or Nietzsche. Now I was thinking, what gets someone to write aphorisms for the sake of writing aphorisms?
Now an aphorism is clearly intended to pass on some bit of wisdom to the listener/reader/whatever. So, the writer has to feel that they are wiser than the general public. When someone writes a book on a particular subject, they may be very well-versed in that subject, and are thus qualified to tell us all about it. But aphorisms are often about life in general, so do these writers think they know more about "life" than the rest of us?
Now, you may think that this is no different than writing a book about one's philosophical thoughts. A book of philosophy is the writer's interpretation of reality, which they are kindly describing to us. However, the difference lies in the laconic nature of an aphorism. An aphorism is short, simple, and to the point. A philosophic writing, on the other hand, meticulously elucidates an often complex web of thoughts. It explains the ins and outs of an idea, while an aphorism merely states it. In fact, an aphorism often makes the same point as an entire tome of writing, but it simply states the point, not even attempting to justify it.
So, in writing aphorisms for the public, these folks are generally saying that they know a hell of a lot about life, so much so that they don't even have to justify anything they say. Or perhaps they are rhetorically gifted people filling a business niche. Either way, I'm on to you, Ben.
