Quote Originally Posted by TheAmishPirate View Post
A bit of a characterization question, to see if the conclusions I've come to hold up:

In studying Twilight's character, I've come to notice that she has something about her not unlike pride. Not flashy and grandiose like Trixie, that's a different sort of pride. This pride is a quiet assumption that she seems to make a lot; that she is the smartest pony in the room. That of the ponies in the conversation, she knows more and better than them. And most of the time, it's true. In Applebuck Season, she did know better than AJ, and because of it, she tried to talk her out of doing the harvest by herself. In Bridle Gossip, she knew more about magic than the country ponies of Ponyville, and dismissed their fears about curses (until proven otherwise). But in episodes like Feeling Pinkie Keen, it's this same assumption, that she knows best, that keeps her from realizing when she could be wrong. Or in Bird in the Hoof, she felt she knew the Princess better, and dismissed Fluttershy's reassurances about Celestia's punishment. We see this even before her development in the pilot. She believes herself to be the only one to solve this whole "Nightmare Moon" mystery because of her knowledge and study, and grows resentful when told she's wrong, shut up, go make friends.

This is never something she'd admit outright, that much is clear. When strongly confronted, like in Boast Busters, she backs down without protest. And she certainly knows her place with the Princess. But it's still an assumption that I see her making, and combined with her black-and-white view of things, tends to be one of her biggest hurdles to accepting new ideas.

Anypony else see this? Or have I just thought myself in circles here?
I definitely agree with this.

It's sort of an insidious problem as well because most of the time Twilight is right. She's generally the most rational pony and usually the best problem solver, so it's difficult for her to learn a consistent lesson even after something like Feeling Pinkie Keen.

Query, however, whether this is a problem that actually needs fixing. It might be true that Twilight would be a better pony overall if she had a slightly more open worldview. However, most of the time, Twilight taking extra time to consider more viewpoints would result in a waste of time because Twilight is usually right. As long as she's not too stubborn, particularly with important matters, I don't think it's unreasonable for her to continue assuming that she knows what she's doing for the majority of issues.