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The Thoughts of a Spiderweb

As Paul relates his conversion experience to an audience in Jerusalem, he says, “They that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me” (Acts 22:9, KJV).

However, Luke, in relating the same event, says, “The men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man” (Acts 9:7, KJV).

 One reason outsider art is increasingly popular is because it seems so unmediated, as though it tumbled directly from the creator's mind onto the canvas. The discovery that the creator actually guided its fall with some skills—skills, worse yet, that he deliberately honed—can feel like a betrayal, at least for those who've demonized the artist as an untutored primitive without any self-awareness.

During the postwar folk music revival, rural musicians faced a similar mixture of adulation and condescensionSpiders appear to offload cognitive tasks to their webs, making them one of a number of species with a mind that isn’t fully confined within the head.

Doctors are frequently asked by patients whether they should disclose a mental illness when applying for work. Recognizing the potential for discrimination on the part of employers, many doctors advise concealment.