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Q: Stupid is as stupid does ( Answered 5 out of 5 stars,   5 Comments )
Question  
Subject: Stupid is as stupid does
Category: Arts and Entertainment
Asked by: krtekz-ga
List Price: $2.00
Posted: 26 Aug 2004 10:56 PDT
Expires: 25 Sep 2004 10:56 PDT
Question ID: 392986
On several occasions in the movie "Forrest Gump", when people ask Gump
"Are you stupid or something?" he always replies "Stupid is as stupid
does." What exactly does his answer mean, or it just means nothing?
Answer  
Subject: Re: Stupid is as stupid does
Answered By: pinkfreud-ga on 26 Aug 2004 11:23 PDT
Rated:5 out of 5 stars
 
Forrest Gump's "Stupid is as stupid does" is a variant of an old
adage, "Handsome is as handsome does." This saying appears in J.R.R.
Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" and in Herman Melville's "Billy
Budd," and can be traced as far back as the 14th Century.

"Handsome is as handsome does" basically means that true handsomeness
has to do with a person's behavior, not just a handsome face. The
saying is also phrased in the forms "Pretty is as pretty does" and
"Beauty is as beauty does."

Forrest's version of the saying means that stupidity is not just a
surface thing derived from a person's appearance. Stupidity is a
matter of deeds, not looks. Like the other versions, it comes down to
this: judge people by what they do, not by how they appear.

"HANDSOME (PRETTY) IS AS HANDSOME (PRETTY) DOES - Good deeds are more
important than good looks. The proverb was first recorded by Chaucer
in 'The Wife of Bath's Tale' (c. 1387). In 1766, in the preface to
'The Vicar of Wakefield,' Oliver Goldsmith wrote: 'Handsome is that
handsome does.' First attested in the United States in 'Journal of a
Lady of Quality' (1774). The saying is found in varying forms,
including 'Beauty is as beauty does'." From the 'Random House
Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings' by Gregory Y. Titelman
(Random House, New York, 1996)."

Phrases: Beauty is as Beauty Does
http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/20/messages/643.html

Google Web Search: "handsome is as handsome does"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=%22handsome+is+as+handsome+does

Google Web Search: "pretty is as pretty does"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=%22pretty+is+as+pretty+does%22

I hope this is helpful. If anything is unclear or incomplete, or if a
link doesn't work for you, please request clarification; I'll be glad
to offer further assistance before you rate my answer.

Best regards,
pinkfreud
krtekz-ga rated this answer:5 out of 5 stars

Comments  
Subject: Re: Stupid is as stupid does
From: daytrader_7__6-ga on 26 Aug 2004 11:46 PDT
 
1 Samuel 16:7
the LORD said to Samuel, "...The LORD does not look at the things man
looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at
the heart."


John 7:24
Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment.
Subject: Re: Stupid is as stupid does
From: krtekz-ga on 27 Aug 2004 06:23 PDT
 
Thank you all.

I have never read Bible. Seems I need to find time read it.
Subject: niv
From: daytrader_7__6-ga on 27 Aug 2004 15:34 PDT
 
It's free on the Internet, of course:
http://bible.gospelcom.net/cgi-bin/bible?language=english&passage=l&version=NIV

But I am also partial to Zondervan:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0310923077/qid=1093645302/sr=8-5/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i5_xgl14/104-4122333-8288765?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

The index is excellent, and the footnotes are extensive.  There are
concepts that I would have missed otherwise.

For brief bits that stand well on their own, I like the book of Ruth,
which is only a few pages long.  (It's a rags-to-riches love story.) 
Also, proverbs, and pretty much anything from any of the gospels -
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  The stories of Jesus are all very
brief, and his words are even more concise.  He was, among infinite
other things, a master of brevity.
Subject: Re: Stupid is as stupid does
From: rcarr-ga on 30 Aug 2004 06:48 PDT
 
"I have never read Bible. Seems I need to find time read it."

Why bother? "daytrader" seems to want to crowbar a bible reference
into every question that he or she comments upon.

Did it ever occur to you, daytrader, that a)not everyone is religious
and b)even if they are religious they may not be a Christian? Most
people don't appreciate being preached to.
Subject: Preachy is as preachy does
From: daytrader_7__6-ga on 30 Aug 2004 09:29 PDT
 
"'daytrader' seems to want to crowbar a bible reference
into every question that he or she comments upon."

There is nothing to which a Bible reference is not relevant.

"Did it ever occur to you, daytrader, that a)not everyone is religious
and b)even if they are religious they may not be a Christian? Most
people don't appreciate being preached to."

The first quote is from the OT.  You seem to have a bone to pick with
religion in general?  Or just Judaism and Christianity?

The Koran: The Cattle
   1. [6.114] Shall I then seek a judge other than Allah? And He it is
Who has revealed to you the Book (which is) made plain; and those whom
We have given the Book know that it is revealed by your Lord with
truth, therefore you should not be of the disputers.

Luke 4:43
he said, "I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God...

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