Is it still possible in today's world to become a full fledged polymath or master of all trades, such as the "Renaissance Man" ideal?
>>515569
No. The creation of social specialisation largely in the 19th century prevents this.
>>515569
Depends on how you define "master" and "all trades". It's perfectly possible to be skilled in various different fields, but to be a master of everything?
>>515586
>prevent this
>>515569
Yes.
You can learn many skills from the internet for one thing.
Anything is possible
>>515569
I'd say it's more possible and easier nowadays. We just hear a lot about the few famous ones that existed long ago while there are likely plenty that go unnoticed at the moment.
>>515569
Of course not.
>>515569
The body of knowledge produced by the global ivory towers is so fucking massive, you can't know it all. However, the ivory tower does have its moments when it swings toward different academic/theoretical flavors to engage in... then when they get board of that, the move onto something new, or resurrect something old which a new scholar is putting a new spin on. Anyone, like myself, who has written and published academic articles understands what I'm talking about.
>>515569
Yep.
If it was possible then it is possible now. You might need some money though.
>>515569
Why would you, though? Limit yourself to one or two fields and you'd prevent yourself from becoming a jack of all trades but a master of none.
Yes, if you have enough time. It's not going to be possible for most people though, because most people are wagecucks.
>>515569
>such as the "Renaissance Man" ideal?
yes, it's called being a smug neet from reddit
I think so. Where I live every family seems to have its one man, often a cuck type who sacrifices himself for the good of his family, who is good with tools, especially a hammer, and does a lot of stuff for the extended family like house repairs and other renovations and additions. Often has a surprising amount of knowledge on several of the fields, and it's not just limited to "construction". But the man may also be very mediocre in health, mentally and physically. If such a cuck were to focus intensely on being in prime health and had decent genetics to go with it, I think he could fit the renaissance man type.
>>515569
>Is it still possible in today's world to become a full fledged polymath or master of all trades
Lol no.
>such as the "Renaissance Man" ideal?
You'll have to trim back those ambitions a bit, but maybe.
Look, there's basically just more stuff out there to know and understand than you could cram into your head within multiple lifetimes. That's it. And this isn't new, even centuries ago any given topic could have more than you may study in a lifetime.
At best one can be a dilettante, you'll never be able to match the knowledge and understanding of a specialist.
>>518074
This. You have access to everything the historical polymaths had access to (and a fuckton more too).
You probably just can't earn a living "as a polymath" now - though there are plenty of people with expertise in several distinct fields.
>>518017
Present continuous tense.
Social specialisation is a collective singular.
Prevents.
>>518205
But the full phrase is " Jack of all trades, master of none; but often times better than master of one"
>>518061
If anything is possible, how come Schwarzenegger never became a good actor?
>>515569
>get marketable degree
>???
>Profit
>Back to school
>Rinse and repeat, reading nonfiction in any free time you miraculously have
>Polymath by 40s
I like only care about a few humanities, so I'm going Abe Lincoln + University
>>515569
Elon Musk.
>>515569
You can't even fully master a single trade. You have to specialize.
>>519214
He is just a manager with good visions.
>>518571
>da vinci was known for his mathematics and not his art and works of engineering
he just did math and poetry and everything NOT painting and building shit for fun
>be clever and talented
>study intensively math and phil
>read literature in free time
>profit?
You'll probably never shag a girl tho
>>519109
He never really tried I guess
>>519109
How do we measure how good an actor is?
He was good enough to be the biggest box office draw in the 80's and 90's.