"Who is John Galt?" Mastery could most closely be viewed as a state of enlightenment. To the non-enlightened it will appear to be dismissive and lazy.

There are a variety of positions one could take once reaching enlightenment: 1. Domination. One could choose to be controlling of the entire field and use it for selfish benefit. 2. Dismissive. Once you reach the pinnacle it becomes apparent that both humanity and the society it has created are horrid and aren't worth interacting with. 3. Appreciation. One could choose to be thankful for being able to reach such a position and to respond by generously using the mastery to use it for the good of humanity. 4. Constructive Legacy. One could choose to form ones own group around that mastery to preserve it beyond themselves.

I believe the dismissive position is the most reasonable and hence most likely to be chosen by those who reach true mastery.

All four positions regularly occur and you can see it readily in masters of respective fields.

The way a master appears depends on their reaction to having gained mastery.

I think the dismissive position is also most likely because I believe there are far more masters than we ever notice. They are not noticed because the majority of them don't bother to use their mastery in an obvious way.

Why should a master bother to correct those beneath them?

If a master interacts with society they have an uphill battle to being treated with the respect they deserve. For the true master there is great value in going their own way and rejecting society.