Man is the only being that can properly be called idle
Man is distinguished from lower animals variously, in some respects acceptably, but in idleness, even the asses that turn their backs in the dust or the pigs that wobble in the mud cannot outdo him. Unless we define idleness in the sense Stevenson has defined it, the quality belongs to almost every animal. R.L. Stevenson makes out idleness an intelligent activity of the mind. When we say that an idle brain is a devil’s workshop, we pay homage to the idle man. Animals are capable of intelligent action when they have a purpose food-seeking or protection, but they do not exercise their power of observation just for the sake of observation. In this sense, man is the only being who can properly be called idle.
