英語演講稿《TheSocialValueoftheCollege

1、英語演講稿thesocialvalueofthecollegeofwhatuseisacollegetraining?wewhohavehaditseldomhearthequestionraisedmightbeal ittlenonplussedtoansweritoffhand. acertainamountofmeditationhasbroughtmetothwhattalk dowecommonstbetweenc whichbusin hoolsconfe igherbecau sodisinter ivelynarro reasthecolollegeeduc essortec

2、hn r?thecolle seitissupp ested.atth wpractical legesgiveylyhearabou ationandth icalorprof geeducatio osedtobeso eschoolsyo skill, youa outhemoreltthecontra eeducation essionalsc niscalledh generaland ugetarelat retoid, whe iberalcuitisasthepithiestrep lywhichlmy selfcangiv e:thebestclaimthatacollege

3、educa/tio ncanpossiblymakeonyourrespect,thebestthingitcanaspiretoaccomplishforyou, isthis:thatitshouldhelpyoutoknowag oodmanwhen youseehim thisisastr ueofwomensasofmen5 scollegesjbutthatitisneitherajokenoraone-sidedabstr actionlsha llnowendea vortoshow.ure,thebroaderoutlook,thehistoricalperspective,

4、thephilosophicatmosphere,orsomethingwhichphrasesofthatsorttrytoexpress youaremadeintoanefficientinstrumentfordoingadefinitething, youhear, attheschools;but,apartfromthat, youmayremainacrudeandsmokykindofpetroleum, incapableofspreadinglight.theuniversitiesandcolleges,ontheotherhand, althoughtheymayle

5、aveyoulessefficientforthisorthatpracticaltask, suffuseyourwholementalitywithsomethingmoreimportantthanskil1. t 1heyredeemy ou,makeyou well-indyouwith addishmind icalschool tended;thi nedpeoplew theveryoth hissignify ?itiscer esttradeoranaturally,theycanno mayleaveyo siswhatwehtleaveyousu. this, atle

6、aramongcohentheycom ersort. nowtain, tobegprofessionparetheire,exactlyhoinwith, tha altrainingboorishorco,asatechn east, ispre liege-trai ducationwi wmuchdoesttthenarrow doessomethbred; theymakego odcompanyo fyoumental ly. iftheyfingmoreforamanthantomakeaskilfulprac ties.ltoolofhim欽握 tmakeshimalsoaj

7、udgeofothermen' sskill whetherhistradebepleadingatthebarorsurgeryorplasteringorplumbing, itdevelopsacriticalsenseinhimforthatsortofoccupation. heunderstands thediffere ncebetween secondrat eandfirst rateworkinhiswholebranchofindustry;hegetstoknowagoodjobinhisownlineassoonasheseesit;andgettingtok

8、nowthisinhisownline,hegetsafaintsenseofwhatgoodworkmaymeananyhow, thatmay,ifcircumstancesfavor,spreadintohisjudgmentselsewhere. soundwork,cleanwork,finishedworkjfeeb1ework, slackwork, sha mwork 欽櫻 hesewordsexpressanidenticalcontrastinmanydifferentdepartmerit sofactivity. insofarforth, then, eventheh

9、umblestmanualtrademaybegetinoneacertainsmalld egreeofpow ertojudgeo fgoodworkg eneral 1 y.now, whati ssupposedt obetheline ofuswhohav ethehigher collegetra ining?isth ereanybroa derline 欽 擻 i nceoureduc ationclaim sprimarily nottobenar row 欽 握 nwhic hwealsoare madegoodju dgesbetwee nwhatisfirstratea

10、ndwhatissecond-rateonly?whatisespeciallytaughtinthecollegeshasiongbeenknownbythenameofthehumanities, andtheseareoftenidentifiedwithgreekandlatin.butitisonlyasliteratures, notaslanguages,thatgreekandlatinhaveanygeneralhumanity-value;sothatinabroadsensethehumanitiesmeanliteratureprimarily,andinastillb

11、roadersensethestudyofmasterpiecesinalmostanyfieldofhumanendeavor.literaturekeepstheprimacy;foritnotonlyconsistsofmasterpiecesbutislargelyaboutmasterpieces,beinglittlemorethananappreciativechronicleofhumanmaster-strokes, sofarasittakestheformofcriticismandhistory.youcangivehumanisticvaluetoalmostanyt

12、hingbyreachingithistorically.geology, economics, mechanics, arehumanitieswhentaughtwithreferencetothesuccessiveachievementsofthegeniusestowhichthesesciencesowetheirbeing. nottaughtthus, literatureremainsgrammar,artacataiogue, historyalistofdates, andnaturalscienceasheetofformulasandweightsan dmeasur

13、es.thesifti ngofhumanc reations! 欽 攏 othinglessthanthisi ies.essent rcollegess hicalhisto ofanything tsandconqu eirpart. st esofactivi uirestanda lourartsan somanyques ndwhenwese emaybe, how adaptation ermsbetter rcriticals ndlessfana takeseveni ithepathosswhatweoug iallythism houldteach ry,thatnot

14、andeveryth estsarefac udyinginth tyhavestoo rdsoftheex dsciencesa tsofperfec ehowdivers variousthe s, wegainar andworsema ensibiliti tica1. wesy ntheactofp oflostcaushttomeanby eansbiogra is,therefo ofpolitics ingsofaras torsthatha isway, wele dthetestof cellentand ndinstitut tiononthep ethetypeso t

15、ests, howf ichersense ysignifyin esgrowboth mpathizewi enetrating esandmisguthehumanit phy;whatou re,biograp merely, but humaneffor veplayedth arnwhattyp time;weacq durable al ionsarebut artofmen;a fexcellenc lexiblethe ofwhatthet genera1. ou moreacutea thmen，smis them;wefee idedepochsevenwhilew eap

16、plaudwh atovercame them.sue hwordsarev agueandsuc hideasarei nadequate, buttheirme aningisunm istakable whatthecol leges 欽櫻 eac hinghumani tiesbyexam pleswhichm aybespecia1, butwhichmustbetypicalandpreg nant 欽擻 houldatleasttrytogiveus,isageneralsenseofwhat, tmdervariousdisguises,superiority hasa.1wa

17、yssignifiedandmaystillsignify.thefeelingforagoodhumanjobanywhere, theadmirationofthereallyadmirablethedisesteemofwhatischeapandtrashyandimpermanent 欽櫻hisiswhatwecalithecriticalsense,thesenseforidealva.lues itisthebetterpartofwhatmenknowaswisdom. someofusarewiseinthiswaynaturallyandbygenius;someofusn

18、everbecomeso.buttohavespentone，syouthatcollege, incontactwiththechoiceandrareandprecious, andyetstilltobeablindprigorvulgarian,unabletoscentouthumanexcellenceortodivineitamiditsaccidents, toknowitonlywhenticketedandlabeledandforcedonusbyothers, thisindeedshouldbeaccountedtheverycalamityandshipwrecko

19、fahighereducatio n.thesenseforhumansuperiorityought, then,tobeconsideredourline,asboringsubwaysistheengineer'slineandthesurgeon sisappendicitis. ourcollegesoughttohavelitupinusalastingrelishforthebetterkindofman, alossofappetiteformediocrities,andadisgustforcheapjacks weoughttosmell, asitwere,th

20、edifferenceofqualityinmenandtheirproposalswhenweentertheworldofaffairsaboutus.expertnessinthismightwellatoneforsomeofourignoranceofdynamos thebestclaimwecanmakeforthehighereducation, thebestsinglephraseinwhichwecantellwhatitoughttodoforus, isthen, exactlywhatlsaid:itshouldenableustoknowagoodmanw hen

21、weseehi m.thatthephraseisanythingbutanemptyepigramfollows,fromthefactthatifyouaskinwhatlineitismostimportantthatademocracylikeoursshouldhaveitssonsanddaughtersskilful,youseethatitisthislinemorethananyotherthepeoplei ntheirwisd om欽櫻hisisthekindofwisdommostneededbythepeople democracyisonitstrial, andn

22、ooneknowshowitwillstandtheordea1. aboundingaboutusarepessimisticprophets.ficklenessandviolenceusedtobe, butarenolonger, theviceswhichtheychargetodemocracy. whatitscriticsnowaffirmisthatitspreferencesareinveteratelyfortheinferior soitwasinthebeginning,theysay, andsoitwillbeworldwithoutend.vulgarityen

23、thronedandinstitutionalized,elbowingeverythingsuperiorfromthehighway, this,theytellus, isourirremediabledestiny;andpic tu re-pa.persofeuropeancontinentarealreadydrawingunclesamwithhoginsteadoftheeagleforhisheraldicemblem. theprivilegedaristocraciesoftheforetime, withalltheiriniquities, didatleastpre

24、servesometasteforhigherhumanqua.lityandhonorcertainformsofrefinementbytheirenduringtraditions.butwhendemocracyissovereign,itsdoubterssay, nobilitywillformasortofinvisiblechurch,andsincerityandrefinement,strippedofhonor, precedence, andfavor, willhavetovegetateonsufferanceinprivatecorners.theywil lha

25、venogen eralinfluenee theywi llbeharmle sseccentri citiesn ow, whocanb eabsolutel ycertainth atthismayn otbethecar eerofdemoc racy?nothi ngfutureis quitesecur e;statesen oughhavein wardlyrott ed 欽播 nddemo cracyasawh olemayunde rgoself-po isoningbut,ontheotherhand, democracyisakindofreligion, andwear

26、eboundnottoadmititsfailure faithsandutopiasarethenoblestexerciseofhumanreason, andnoonewithasparkofreasoninhimwillsitdownfatalisticallybeforethecroaker spicture thebestofusarefilledwiththecontraryvisionofademocracystumblingthrougheveryerrortillitsinstitutionsglowwithjusticeanditscustomsshinewithbeau

27、ty.ourbettermenshallshowthewayandweshallfollowthem;sowearebroughtroundagaintothemissionofthehighereducationinhelpingustoknowthebet terkindofm anwhenever weseehimthenotion thatapeopl ecanrunits elfanditsa ffairsanon ymouslyisn owe 11 know ntobet hesi lliestofab surdities mankinddoe snothingsavethroug

28、hinitiativesonthepartofinventors , greatorsm all, andimi tationbyth erestofus 欽 櫻 heseareth esolefacto rsactivein humanprogress.individualsofgeniusshowtheway, andsetthepatterns, whichcommonpeoplethenadoptandfollow. therivalryofthepatternsisthehistoryoftheworid ourdemocraticproblemthusisstatableinult

29、ra-simpleterms:whoarethekindofmenfromwhomourmajoritiesshalitaketheircue?whomshalltheytreatasrightfulleaders?weandourleadersarethexandtheyoftheequationherejallotherhistoriccircumstances, betheyeconomical, political, orintellectual,areonlythebackgroundofoccasiononwhichthe livingdram aworksitse lfoutbe

30、twe enus.int hisverysim plewaydoes thevalueof oureducatedclassdefineitself wemorethanothersshouldbeabletodivinetheworthierandbetterleaders. thetermsherearemonstrouslysimplified,ofcourse, butsuchabird s-eyeviewletsusimmedia telyta,keourbearings. inourdemocracy, whereeverythingelseissoshifting,wealumn

31、iandalumnaeofthecollegesaretheonlypermanentpresencethatcorrespondstothearistocracyinoldercountries wehavecontinuoustraditions, astheyhave;ourmotto, too, isnoblesseobligejand, unlikethem,westandforideal interestssolely,forwehavecorporateselfishnessandwieldnopowersofcorruption. weoughttohaveourownclas

32、s-consciousness lesintellectuels!whatprouderclub-namecouldtherebethanthisone,usedironicallybythepartyofredblood, thepartyofeverystupidprejudiceandpassion,duringtheanti-dreyfuscraze,tosatirizethemeninfrancewhostillretainedsomecriticalsenseandjudgmenticriticalsense, ithastobeconfessed, isnotanexciting

33、term, hardlyabannertoearryinprocessions affeetionsforoldhabit,currentsofself-interest,andgalesofpassionaretheforcesthatkeepthehumanshipmoving;andthepressureofthejudiciouspilot'shanduponthetillerisrelativelyinsignificantenetgy.buttheaffections,passionsa.ndinterestsareshifting,successive, anddistr

34、aught;theyblowinalternationwhilethepilot' shandissteadfastheknowsthecompass, and, withalltheleewayslieisobligedtotacktoward, healwaysmakessomeheadway. asmallforceifitneverletsupwillaccumulateeffectsmoreconsiderablethanthoseofmuchgreaterforcesiftheseworkinconsistently. theeeaselesswhisperofthemor

35、epermanentideals,thesteadytugoftruthandjustice,givethembuttime, mustwarpthewor idintheird irection.thisbird' seyeviewofthegenera1steeringfunctionofthecollege-bredamidthedriftingsofdemocracyoughttohelpustoawidervisionofwhatourcollegesthemselvesshouldaimat. ifwearetobetheyeast-cakefordemocracy'

36、;sdough,ifwearetomakeitrisewithculture spreferences,wemustseetoitthatculturespreadsbroadsails. wemustshaketheolddoublereefsoutofthecanvasintothewindandsunshine, andletineverymodernsubject, surethatanysubjectwillprovehumanistic, ifitssettingbekeptonlyw ideenough<stevenso nsayssomew heretohisr eade

37、r:youthinkyouarejustmakingthisbargain,butyouarereallylayingdownalinkinthepolicyofmankind. well, yourtechnicalschoolshouldenableyoutomakeyourbargainsplendidly;butyourcollegeshouldshowyoujusttheplaceofthatkindofbargainprettypoorplace,possiblythewholepolicyofmankind. thatisthekindofliberaloutlook, ofpe

38、rspective,ofatmosphere,whichshouldsurrou ndeverysub jectasacol legedealsw ithit>we ofthecolle gesmustera dicateacur iousnotionwhichnumbersofgoodpeoplehaveaboutsuchancientseatsoflearningasharvard tomanyignorantoutsiders,thatnamesuggestslittlemorethanakindofsterilizedconceitandincapacityforbeingple

39、ased. inedithwyatt'sexquisitebookofchicagosketchescalledeveryonehisownwaythereisacouplewhostandforcultureinthesenseofexclusiveness:richardelliotandhisfemininecounterpart 欽扌輦 eeblecaricaturesofmankind,unabletoknowanygoodthingwhentheyseeit, incapableofenjoymentunlessaprintedlabelgivesthemleave pos

40、siblythistypeofculturemayexistnearcambridgeandboston,theremaybespecimensthere,forpriggishnessisjustlikepainter'scolicoranyothertrade-disease.buteverygoodcollegemakesitsstudentsimmuneagainstthismalady, ofwhichthemicrobehauntstheneighborhoodprintedpages.itdoessobyitsgeneraltonebeingtooheartyforthe

41、microbe' slife.realculturelivesbysympathiesandadmirations,notbydislikesanddisdainunderallmisleadingwrappingsitpouncesunerringlyuponthehumancoreifacollege,throughtheinferiorhumaninfluencesthathavegrownregnantthere,failstocatchtherobustertone, itsfailureiscolossal, foritssocialfunctionstops:democr

42、acygivesitawideberth,turnstowarditadeaf ear.tone , tobesure, isaterribl yvagueword touse,butthereisnoother,andthiswholemeditationisoverquestionsoftone bytheirtonearealithingshumaneitherlostorsaved.ifdemocracyistobithiertone.ifwearetoimpressitwithourpreferences, weourselvesmustusethepropertone,whichw

43、e, inturn, musthavecaughtfromourownteachers. itallrevertsintheendtotheactionofinnumerableimitativeindividualsuponeachotherandtothequestionofwhosetonehasthehighestspreadingpowerasaclass, wecollegegraduatesshouldlooktoitthatourshasspreadingpower. ito ughttohave thehighest spreadingp owerino uressentia lfunctiono findicatin gthebettermen, wenowh aveformidablecompetitorsoutside. mcclure