So you want to talk to a historical figure to see what they think of you? Oy.
I think it's more that they want to talk to a historical figure, e.g. Plato, to see what they think about being regarded as so intelligent.
Hypothetical situation presented below:
Say I don't have a clear perception of my abilities as a thinker, yet I encounter people on a daily basis praising me for exactly that. Some qualifed, some not. In fact, most people view me as intellectually gifted.
Suppose then that I take an IQ test and achieve a rock solid average of a 100 IQ.
Question: Which assesment holds the greatest external validity in your opinion?
How do we derive objective truths about ourselves? Are we only left with achievement measures?
I think you're mistaken about some words and concepts here. The casual appraisals people in your daily life are making of your intelligence or other qualities are inherently subjective. It's their
opinion that you are intelligent. What they are basing it on is not necessarily consistent, is not based on the same observations/phenomena, nor does it inherently mean the same thing. Some know you better than others, some don't see certain behavior, etc.
Thus, you're also misusing the term "external validity." There is none in this case, as these "assessments" or opinions are just about you, and can't be generalized to any other group, nor can your personal weighting of these opinions against each other or against your assessed IQ.
And what do you mean by "objective truth about ourselves?" What "truths" are you looking for?
But which measure would you trust?
This is a bad example since appearence is somewhat subjective, but I did not concider myself particularly good looking, until a classically beautiful girl was attracted to my face, by her own admission. It would seem to me from that experience that a logical inference is that I am indeed above average in appearance, since she was a stunner.
Again, you're mixing terms and ideas here. It would simply be this "classically beautiful girl's"
opinion that you are attractive, which is, again, inherently subjective. Just because someone you deem to be beautiful or "stunning" finds you attractive does not mean you are suddenly objectively attractive by the transitive property or something. It's still just a subjective opinion, as is the idea of "classic beauty," which is fraught with sociocultural variables. Subjective and objective are categorically different and you can't transform one into the other, especially based on something like someone embodying that quality you value judging you to also have that quality.
Similarly, just because someone you believe to be intellectually gifted (or even someone who has a high FSIQ) thinks you are gifted does not suddenly mean you are also intellectually gifted.
