Understanding the power of ideas in human thought is critical to cultivating intellectual development. We cannot give academic content deep and significant meaning, nor effectively use it in our lives, if we are unable to actively bring the concepts embedded in that content into our thinking. We cannot command the quality of our own lives if we cannot recognize the role of ideas in our lives. We cannot be ethical persons if we cannot recognize how and when we manipulate others---or they manipulate us--- through misleading or false ideas. In short, the development of the educated mind presupposes insightful understanding of the crucial role of concepts and ideas in human life.