Why are people so proud of not knowing things?

[CurlewKate]

I’m fascinated by threads where a poster says “Well, I’VE never heard of X person/X thing!” As if it’s a badge of honour. If I was interested I would either ask, or more likely look it up. Or just move on. Why stop to post?

If I'm not aware of something, I might admit to it, but not in a "hey, I'm pleased not to know" way, but more as an acknowledgement that I hadn't known.
Depending on what the issue was, I might try to find out more about it or, if not, as you say, just move on.

Oh I plead guilty to doing this, although in my defence I usually Google any stuff I don't know as soon as I read it or hear about it.

And you are right that sometimes it's said in the spirit of a kind of snobbishness.

But sometimes it's a genuine response to hearing something useful or pleasing and is said with a sense of gratitude at being enlightened.

The ones that really get me are when there's a tribute thread to a recently-deceased celebrity who had a more niche fanbase and was not a huge, ubiquitous household name.

Very frequently, somebody will see the thread, decide to open and read it and then actively decide to engage - to tell all of the person's admirers on the thread that "I've never heard of her/him".

Ummmmm, thank you??!! Your poignant contribution to this memorial really gladdens and resonates with us all!!

It all in the way that saying you'd never heard of something is said

If someone says that with a sense of wonderment like "well, I never heard of that! " With the emphasis on the word 'heard', that denotes a sense of interest and receptiveness to the knowledge gained.

If someone says 'I've never heard of that! ", with the emphasis on "I've" and "that", that denotes a sense of "well, if I'VE never heard of that then it's probably not true / not worth knowing".

Myself, I'm always happy to hear of something that I haven't heard of, but thanks to Google I like to fast check the information.

When Matthew Perry died there were posters on here falling over themselves to claim they’d never heard of him. A major star in a tv show that was and remains a global phenomenon but, no, the highbrow crew didn’t know him from a bar of soap 🙄. Quite why they needed everyone to know that by virtue of posting on a thread about someone they’d never heard of I really don’t understand.

I try not to do this, but it is very annoying to live in a world where everyone assumes that everything is the same for everyone. I guess it’s a small way of fighting back against that. I wouldn’t know a Taylor Swift song if I heard one and it’s not because I’m showing off, it’s because I don’t know what she sounds like. I know I’m not the only one but I get fed up with being told “everyone this” or “everyone that”.

I do know who Olivia Rodrigo is because I heard her song “Bad Idea” somewhere and I really loved it so I went and looked for her other songs on Spotify. I’m not living in a vacuum. It’s just that everybody is different!

But you have obviously heard of Taylor Swift? If someone came along acting all 'well I've never heard of her' I feel like they are making some kind of point. Fair enough if you dont know her music but to never have even heard of her would be kind of odd at this point

But it’s even more annoying where people assume that every conversation and thread should be about something YOU are interested in. That is a type of supreme arrogance no? To feel the need to put something down to ‘fight against’ the idea that many people know and care about something that you don’t.
that says more about you really and is exactly what the op is talking about.

if I read something about someone I genuinely don’t know, I either have my interest piqued and look them up or I scroll past knowing the thread just isn’t one I need or want to be on. I don’t feel the need to flounce? Stick a boot in? Act superior? I don’t even know what it is but it’s not anything very positive is it.

...because it is not cool to be a swot.

I was a 'nerd' and a 'geek' at school because I wanted to learn. Nowadays, I just get called a swot for knowing things! Mind you, I am deeply uncool, so I don't mind. Personally, I'd rather have knowledge of most things of interest. If I don't know something, I ask someone or look it up online.

But if you don't know then just Google it.

There's no reason to comment on a thread that you've never heard of this person. Who cares you don't know them?

I’m guilty of not reading the thread or even the original post. Obviously I’m not talking about threads, I wouldn’t pop onto one and do this! I’m going to bow out of this now with my head between my legs.

I mean, my tail! And I agree people who do this are twats.

My DGM’s expression was, “I don’t know anything about it, and I wouldn’t give you tuppence for it anyway.”