第一篇:哈佛大学演讲(中英对照)英语口语
The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination 失败的好处与想象的重要
Harvard University Commencement Address
J.K.Rowling
President Faust, members of the Harvard Corporation and the Board of Overseers, members of the faculty, proud parents, and, above all, graduates, 福斯特主席,哈佛公司和监察委员会的各位成员,各位老师、家长、全体毕业生们: The first thing I would like to say is “thank you.” Not only has Harvard given me an extraordinary honour, but the weeks of fear and nausea I’ve endured at the thought of giving this commencement address have made me lose weight.A win-win situation!Now all I have to do is take deep breaths, squint at the red banners and convince myself that I am at the world’s largest Gryffindors' reunion.首先请允许我说一声谢谢。哈佛不仅给了我无上的荣誉,连日来为这个演讲经受的恐惧和紧张,更令我减肥成功。这真是一个双赢的局面。现在我要做的就是深呼吸几下,眯着眼睛看看前面的大红横幅,安慰自己正在世界上最大的魔法学院聚会上。
Delivering a commencement address is a great responsibility;or so I thought until I cast my mind back to my own graduation.The commencement speaker that day was the distinguished British philosopher Baroness Mary Warnock.Reflecting on her speech has helped me enormously in writing this one, because it turns out that I can't remember a single word she said.This liberating discovery enables me 更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.coming a gay wizard.发表毕业演说是一个巨大的责任,至少在我回忆自己当年的毕业典礼前是这么认为的。那天做演讲的是英国著名的哲学家Baroness Mary Warnock,对她演讲的回忆,对我写今天的演讲稿,产生了极大的帮助,因为我不记得她说过的任何一句话了。这个发现让我释然,让我不再担心我可能会无意中影响你放弃在商业,法律或政治上的大好前途,转而醉心于成为一个快乐的魔法师。
You see? If all you remember in years to come is the 'gay wizard' joke, I've still come out ahead of Baroness Mary Warnock.Achievable goals-the first step to self-improvement.你们看,如果在若干年后你们还记得“快乐的魔法师”这个笑话,那就证明我已经超越了Baroness Mary Warnock。建立可实现的目标——这是提高自我的第一步。
Actually, I have wracked my mind and heart for what I ought to say to you today.I have asked myself what I wish I had known at my own graduation, and what important lessons I have learned in the 21 years that has expired between that day and this.实际上,我为今天应该和大家谈些什么绞尽了脑汁。我问自己什么是我希望早在毕业典礼上就该了解的,而从那时起到现在的21年间,我又得到了什么重要的启示。
I have come up with two answers.On this wonderful day when we are gathered together to celebrate your academic success, I have decided to talk to you about the benefits of failure.And as you stand on the threshold of what is sometimes 更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.comfortable experience for the 42-year-old that she has become.Half my lifetime ago, I was striking an uneasy balance between the ambition I had for myself, and what those closest to me expected of me.回顾21岁刚刚毕业时的自己,对于今天42岁的我来说,是一个稍微不太舒服的经历。可以说,我人生的前一部分,一直挣扎在自己的雄心和身边的人对我的期望之间。I was convinced that the only thing I wanted to do, ever, was to write novels.However, my parents, both of whom came from impoverished backgrounds and neither of whom had been to college, took the view that my overactive imagination was an amusing personal quirk that could never pay a mortgage, or secure a pension.我一直深信,自己唯一想做的事情,就是写小说。不过,我的父母,他们都来自贫穷的背景,没有任何一人上过大学,坚持认为我过度的想象力是一个令人惊讶的个人怪癖,根本不足以让我支付按揭,或者取得足够的养老金。
I know the irony strikes like with the force of a cartoon anvil now, but… 我现在明白反讽就像用卡通铁砧去打击你,但...更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.compromise was reached that in retrospect satisfied nobody, and I went up to study Modern Languages.Hardly had my parents' car rounded the corner at the end of the road than I ditched German and scuttled off down the Classics corridor.他们希望我去拿个职业学位,而我想去攻读英国文学。最后,达成了一个双方都不甚满意的妥协:我改学现代语言。可是等到父母一走开,我立刻放弃了德语而报名学习古典文学。I cannot remember telling my parents that I was studying Classics;they might well have found out for the first time on graduation day.Of all the subjects on this planet, I think they would have been hard put to name one less useful than Greek mythology when it came to securing the keys to an executive bathroom.我不记得将这事告诉了父母,他们可能是在我毕业典礼那一天才发现的。我想,在全世界的所有专业中,他们也许认为,不会有比研究希腊神话更没用的专业了,根本无法换来一间独立宽敞的卫生间。
I would like to make it clear, in parenthesis, that I do not blame my parents for their point of view.There is an expiry date on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction;the moment you are old enough to take the wheel, responsibility lies with you.What is more, I cannot criticise my parents for hoping that I would never experience poverty.They had been poor themselves, and I have since been poor, and I quite agree with them that it is not an ennobling experience.Poverty entails fear, and stress, and sometimes depression;it means a thousand petty humiliations and hardships.Climbing out of poverty by your own efforts, that 更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.come to pass, and by every usual standard, I was the biggest failure I knew.最终,我们所有人都必须自己决定什么算作失败,但如果你愿意,世界是相当渴望给你一套标准的。所以我承认命运的公平,从任何传统的标准看,在我毕业仅仅七年后的日子里,我的失败达到了史诗般空前的规模:短命的婚姻闪电般地破裂,我又失业成了一个艰难的单更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.complicated, and beyond anyone's total control, and the humility to know that will enable you to survive its vicissitudes.如果给我一部时间机器,我会告诉21岁的自己,人的幸福在于知道生活不是一份漂亮的成绩单,你的资历、简历,都不是你的生活,虽然你会碰到很多与我同龄或更老一点的人今天依然还在混淆两者。生活是艰辛的,复杂的,超出任何人的控制能力,而谦恭地了解这一点,将使你历经沧桑后能够更好的生存。
You might think that I chose my second theme, the importance of imagination, because of the part it played in rebuilding my life, but that is not wholly so.Though I will defend the value of bedtime stories to my last gasp, I have learned to value imagination in a much broader sense.Imagination is not only the uniquely human capacity to envision that which is not, and therefore the fount of all invention and innovation.In its arguably most transformative and revelatory capacity, it is the power that enables us to empathise with humans whose experiences we have never shared.对于第二个主题的选择——想象力的重要性——你们可能会认为是因为它对我重建生活起到了帮助,但事实并非完全如此。虽然我愿誓死捍卫睡前要给孩子讲故事的价值观,我对想象力的理解已经有了更广泛的含义。想象力不仅仅是人类设想还不存在的事物这种独特更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.come to give information, or to try and find out what had happened to those who they had left behind.我有很多的同事是前政治犯,他们已离开家园流离失所,或逃亡流放,因为他们敢于怀疑政府、独立思考。来我们办公室的访客,包括那些前来提供信息,或想设法知道那些被迫留下的同志发生了什么事的人。
I shall never forget the African torture victim, a young man no older than I was at the time, who had become mentally ill after all he had endured in his homeland.He trembled uncontrollably as he spoke into a video camera about the brutality inflicted upon him.He was a foot taller than I was, and seemed as fragile as a child.I was given the job of escorting him to the Underground Station afterwards, and this man whose life had been shattered by cruelty took my hand with exquisite courtesy, and wished me future happiness.我将永远不会忘记一个非洲酷刑的受害者,一名当时还没有我大的年轻男子,他因在故乡的经历而精神错乱。在摄像机前讲述被残暴地摧残的时候,他颤抖失控。他比我高一英尺,却看上去像一个脆弱的儿童。我被安排随后护送他到地铁站,这名生活已被残酷地打乱的男子,小心翼翼地握着我的手,祝我未来生活幸福。
Many of my co-workers were ex-political prisoners, people who had been displaced from their homes, or fled into exile, because they had the temerity to think independently of their government.Visitors to our office included those who had come to give information, or to try and find out what had happened to those 更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.come mentally ill after all he had endured in his homeland.He trembled uncontrollably as he spoke into a video camera about the brutality inflicted upon him.He was a foot taller than I was, and seemed as fragile as a child.I was given the job of escorting him to the Underground Station afterwards, and this man whose life had been shattered by cruelty took my hand with exquisite courtesy, and wished me future happiness.我将永远不会忘记一个非洲酷刑的受害者,一名当时还没有我大的年轻男子,他因在故乡的经历而精神错乱。在摄像机前讲述被残暴地摧残的时候,他颤抖失控。他比我高一英尺,却看上去像一个脆弱的儿童。我被安排随后护送他到地铁站,这名生活已被残酷地打乱的男子,小心翼翼地握着我的手,祝我未来生活幸福。
And as long as I live I shall remember walking along an empty corridor and suddenly hearing, from behind a closed door, a scream of pain and horror such as I have never heard since.The door opened, and the researcher poked out her head and told me to run and make a hot drink for the young man sitting with her.She had just given him the news that in retaliation for his own outspokenness against his country's regime, his mother had been seized and executed.只要我活着,我就会记得,在一个空荡荡的的走廊,突然从背后的门里,传来我从未听更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.comfortably within the bounds of their own experience, never troubling to wonder how it would feel to have been born other than they are.They can refuse to hear screams or to peer inside cages;they can close their minds and hearts to any suffering that does not touch them personally;they can refuse to know.而很多人选择不去使用他们的想象力。他们选择留在自己舒适的世界里,从来不愿花力气去想想如果生在别处会怎样。他们可以拒绝去听别人的尖叫,看一眼囚禁的笼子;他们可更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.committing an act of outright evil ourselves, we collude with it, through our own apathy.更甚的是,那些选择不去同情的人,可能会激活真正的怪兽。因为尽管自己没有犯下罪恶,我们却通过冷漠与之勾结。
One of the many things I learned at the end of that Classics corridor down which I ventured at the age of 18, in search of something I could not then define, was this, written by the Greek author Plutarch: What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality.我18岁开始从古典文学中汲取许多知识,其中之一当时并不完全理解,那就是希腊作家普鲁塔克所说:我们内心获得的,将改变外在的现实。
That is an astonishing statement and yet proven a thousand times every day of our lives.It expresses, in part, our inescapable connection with the outside world, the fact that we touch other people's lives simply by existing.更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.xiexiebang.come again, and, of course, by the knowledge that we held certain photographic evidence that would be exceptionally valuable if any of us ran for Prime Minister.我的演讲要接近尾声了。对你们,我有最后一个希望,也是我21岁时就有的。毕业那天坐在我身边的朋友现在是我终身的挚交,他们是我孩子的教父母,是在我遇到麻烦时愿意伸出援手,在我用他们的名字给哈利波特中的“食死徒”起名而不会起诉我的朋友。我们在毕业典礼时坐在了一起,因为我们关系亲密,拥有共同的永远无法再来的经历,当然,也因为假想要是我们中的任何人竞选首相,那照片将是极为宝贵的关系证明。
So today, I can wish you nothing better than similar friendships.And tomorrow, I hope that even if you remember not a single word of mine, you remember those of Seneca, another of those old Romans I met when I fled down the Classics corridor, in retreat from career ladders, in search of ancient wisdom: 更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.manfen.net/topic-download.html 所以今天我可以给你们的,没有比拥有知己更好的祝福了。明天,我希望即使你们不记得我说的任何一个字,你们还能记得哲学家塞内加的一句至理明言。我当年没有顺着事业的阶梯向上攀爬,转而与他在古典文学的殿堂相遇,他的古老智慧给了我人生的启迪: As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters.生活就像故事一样:不在乎长短,而在于质量,这才是最重要的。I wish you all very good lives.我祝愿你们都有美好的生活。Thank you very much.非常感谢大家。
更多出国考试资料下载:http://www.manfen.net/topic-download.html
第二篇:中国学生哈佛大学毕业典礼演讲The Spiders Bite(中英对照)
The Spider’s Bite
When I was in middle school, a poisonous spider bit my right hand.I ran to my mom for help—but instead of taking me to a doctor, my mom set my hand on fire.After wrapping my hand with several layers of cotton, then soaking it in wine, she put a chopstick into my mouth,and ignited the cotton.在我上中学的时候,一只有毒蜘蛛咬伤了我的右手,我去找母亲帮忙,但是她没有找医生,却把我的手放在火上面。她用酒浸过的棉纱绕着我的手缠了好几层之后,在我的嘴里放了一根筷子,然后点燃了棉纱。【语言点解析】
Poisonous表示有毒的;恶毒的;讨厌的。例句:A lot of poisonous waste water comes from that chemical factory.那个化工厂排出大量有毒的废水。
Heat quickly penetrated the cotton and began to roast my hand.The searing pain made me want to scream, but the chopstick prevented it.All I could do was watch my hand burn-one minute, then two minutes –until mom put out the fire.棉纱上的温度很快上来了,我的手也开始发烫。这股灼痛让我想要大叫,不过我嘴里含着的筷子让我叫不出来。我唯一能做的就是看着我的手骨,一分钟过去了,两分钟过去了,直到母亲熄灭火。
You see, the part of China I grew up in was a rural village, and at that time pre-industrial.When I was born, my village had no cars, no telephones, no electricity, not even running water.And we certainly didn’t have access to modern medical resources.所以你看到,我是在中国的一个小山村里成长的,在那个时候,并不发达。在我出生的那个年代,我们村没车、没电话、也没电,甚至都没有自来水!且理所当然地,我没有接触现代医疗资源的办法。
There was no doctor my mother could bring me to see about my spider bite.For those who study biology, you may have grasped the science behind my mom’s cure: heat deactivates proteins, and a spider’s venom is simply a form of protein.It’s cool how that folk remedy actually incorporates basic biochemistry, isn’t it? 当我被蜘蛛咬伤时,并没有医生可以来治疗我。对于学生物学的人来说,你也许能找到我母亲治愈背后所包含的科学原理:热量能够让蛋白质失活,而蜘蛛的毒液都是蛋白质组成的。将这个土方子和生物化学基础联系起来很神奇,不是吗? 【语言点解析】
Folk remedy表示偏方。例句:The active component, willow bark, was used as a folk remedy as long ago as the 5th century BC.它来自早在公元前五世纪就被用于民间配方的柳树皮,是这种树皮的一种有效成分。
But I am a PhD student in biochemistry at Harvard, I now know that better, less painful and less risky treatments existed.So I can’t help but ask myself, why I didn’t receive one at the time? 不过我现在是一个在哈佛学习生物化学的博士生,我现在知道了一个更好的、不那么痛、危险系数更小的治疗方法。所以,我忍不住问我自己,为什么那个时候我不能接受更好的治疗吗? Fifteen years have passed since that incident.I am happy to report that my hand is fine.But this question lingers, and I continue to be troubled by the unequal distribution of scientific knowledge throughout the world.距离那个事故发生已经十五年了,我很高兴地告诉你们:我的手现在恢复地很好。不过这个问题在我心里萦绕了很久,我也时常会被科学知识分布的不均衡问题所困扰。【语言点解析】
Linger表示:徘徊;苟延残喘;缓慢度过。例句:The girl lingered by the lake until it was dark.女孩在湖畔一直徘徊到天黑。
We have learned to edit the human genome and unlock many secrets of how cancer progresses.We can manipulate neuronal activity literally with the switch of a light.Each year brings more advances in biomedical research-exciting, transformative accomplishments.我们曾学习过如何编辑人类基因谱,揭示了许多关于癌症的秘密。我们能够轻松地操控神经元的活动。生物医药研究每年都会有很多进步和令人振奋的变革、成就。
Yet, despite the knowledge we have amassed, we haven’t been so successful in deploying it to where it’s needed most.According to the World Bank, twelve percent of the world’s population lives on less than $2 a day.虽然我们取得了很多成就,但是我们却不能将这些成就传递到最需要它的地方。据世界银行统计数据表明,世界人口的12%一天的生活费不到2美元。
Malnutrition kills more than 3 million children annually.Three hundred million people are afflicted by malaria globally.All over the world, we constantly see these problems of poverty, illness, and lack of resources impeding the flow of scientific information.每年都有三百万的儿童死于营养不良。全球有三亿的人收到疟疾的影响。在全世界,我们能看到无数的贫困问题,病痛问题以及资源匮乏导致科学信息不流通的问题。
Lifesaving knowledge we take for granted in the modern world is often unavailable in these underdeveloped regions.And in far too many places, people are still essentially trying to cure a spider bite with fire.救生知识在现代化的世界是理所当然的,不过在经济欠发达地区却是高不可及的。所以,在许许多多地方,人们还是用火来治疗蜘蛛的咬伤。【语言点解析】
Take it for granted表示:认为理所当然;视为当然;理所当然;想当然。例句:It's something we all take for granted: our ability to look at an object, near or far, and bring it instantly into focus.这是一个我们习以为常的事情:不管物体是远是近,我们的眼睛总能在看到物体的时候迅速完成对焦。
While studying at Harvard, I saw how scientific knowledge can help others in simple, yet profound ways.The bird flu pandemic in the 2000s looked to my village like a spell cast by demons.在哈佛学习期间,我知道了科学知识是如何用简单的又深刻的方式帮助到其他人的。2000年的一次流感使我的家乡像被恶魔下了诅咒一般。
Our folk medicine didn’t even have half-measures to offer.What’s more, farmers didn’t know the difference between common cold and flu;they didn’t understand that the flu was much more lethal than the common cold.Most people were also unaware that the virus could transmit across different species.我们的民间治疗根本找不到解决办法。更严重的是,农民们不知道普通的感冒和流感之间的区别。他们不明白流感比普通的感冒要致命地多。他们中的大多数人都对病毒在动物种类间的传播没有概念。【语言点解析】
Transmit表示传输、传送;短语transmitted ray表示透射光。例句:He has transmitted the report to us.他已经把报告传送给我们。
So when I realized that simple hygiene practices like separating different animal species could contain the spread of the disease, and that I could help make this knowledge available to my village.所以我意识到简单的卫生治疗方法例如将动物隔离可以治疗这种病时,我可以用这种方式让我的家乡更快接受这种科学知识。That was my first “Aha” moment as a budding scientist.But it was more than that: it was also a vital inflection point in my own ethical development, my own self-understanding as a member of the global community.那是我作为生物科学家的第一次惊叹。不过也不仅仅就此而已:这也是我自身理念提升的至关重要的一个转折,也是关于我作为地球上一员的自我理解的转折。
Harvard dares us to dream big, to aspire to change the world.Here on this Commencement Day, we are probably thinking of grand destinations and big adventures that await us.哈佛鼓励我们有大梦想,去激励我们改变这个世界。在这个毕业日,我们也可以想象等待我们的伟大宏图。
As for me, I am also thinking of the farmers in my village.My experience here reminds me how important it is for researchers to communicate our knowledge to those who need it.Because by using the science we already have, we could probably bring my village and thousands like it into the world you and I take for granted every day.And that’s an impact every one of us can make!但是对于我来说,我还在想着我家乡的农民们。我的经历让我意识到,将知识传递给需要的人是多么重要。因为,运用我们所知道的知识,我们可以将知识传递到我的家乡和千万个像我家乡一样的地方带进这个我们在座每个人所习以为常的世界。But the question is, will we make the effort , or not? 不过问题是,我们会不会尽力呢?
More than ever before,our society emphasizes science and innovation.But an equally important emphasis should be on distributing the knowledge we have to where it’s needed.很久之前,我们的社会就强调过科学和创新的重要性,但是同等重要的,我们应该强调将这些知识平等地传递给需要它的人的重要性。
Changing the world doesn’t mean that everyone has to find the next big thing.It can be as simple as becoming better communicators, and finding more creative ways to pass on the knowledge we have to people like my mom and the farmers in their local community.改变世界并不是说每个人都应该发现下一个伟大的东西。改变世界可以是简单的方式,比如成为一个更好的传播者,发现更多有创造力的传播知识给像我的妈妈和农民这样生活在未工业化地区的人的方式。
【语言点解析】
Pass on表示:传递;继续;去世。例句:He has passed me on all the materials which he had got together.他把已搜集到的材料全交给了我。
Our society also needs to recognize that the equal distribution of knowledge is a pivotal step of human development, and work to bring this into reality.我们的社会也应当明白知识的平衡分布是人类进步不可或缺的一步,这需要我们的努力来实现。
And if we do that, then perhaps a teenager in rural China who is bitten by a spider will not have to burn his hand, but will know to seek a doctor instead.如果我们努力了,一个在中国农村的青少年被毒蜘蛛咬了的话,就不用再火疗而是去见医生了。
Thank you!谢谢!
第三篇:哈佛大学演讲
The Spider’s Bite
When I was in middle school, a poisonous spider bit my right hand.I ran to my mom for help—but instead of taking me to a doctor, my mom set my hand on fire.After wrapping my hand with several layers of cotton, then soaking it in wine, she put a chopstick into my mouth, and ignited the cotton.Heat quickly penetrated the cotton and began to roast my hand.The searing pain made me want to scream, but the chopstick prevented it.All I could do was watch my hand burn-one minute, then two minutes –until mom put out the fire.You see, the part of China I grew up in was a rural village, and at that time pre-industrial.When I was born, my village had no cars, no telephones, no electricity, not even running water.And we certainly didn’t have access to modern medical resources.There was no doctor my mother could bring me to see about my spider bite.For those who study biology, you may have grasped the science behind my mom’s cure: heat deactivatesproteins, and a spider’s venom is simply a form of protein.It’s cool how that folk remedy actually incorporates basic biochemistry, isn’t it? But I am a PhD student in biochemistry at Harvard, I now know that better, less painful and less risky treatments existed.So I can’t help but ask myself, why I didn’t receive one at the time?
Fifteen years have passed since that incident.I am happy to report that my hand is fine.But this question lingers, and I continue to be troubled by the unequal distribution of scientific knowledge throughout the world.We have learned to edit the human genome and unlock many secrets of how cancer progresses.We can manipulate neuronal activity literally with the switch of a light.Each year brings more advances in biomedical research-exciting, transformative accomplishments.Yet, despite the knowledge we have amassed, we haven’t been so successful in deploying it to where it’s needed most.According to the World Bank, twelve percent of the world’s population lives on less than $2 a day.Malnutrition kills more than 3 million children annually.Three hundred million people are afflicted by malaria globally.All over the world, we constantly see these problems of poverty, illness, and lack of resources impeding the flow of scientific information.Lifesaving knowledge we take for granted in the modern world is often unavailable in these underdeveloped regions.And in far too many places, people are still essentially trying to cure a spider bite with fire.While studying at Harvard, I saw how scientific knowledge can help others in simple, yet profound ways.The bird flu pandemic in the 2000s looked to my village like a spell cast by demons.Our folk medicine didn’t even have half-measures to offer.What’s more, farmers didn’t know the difference between common cold and flu;they didn’t understand that the flu was much more lethal than the common cold.Most people were also unaware that the virus could transmit across different animal species.So when I realized that simple hygiene practices like separating different animal species could contain the spread of the disease, and that I could help make this knowledge available to my village, that was my first “Aha” moment as a budding scientist.But it was more than that: it was also a vital inflection point in my own ethical development, my own self-understanding as a member of the global community.Harvard dares us to dream big, to aspire to change the world.Here on this Commencement Day, we are probably thinking of grand destinations and big adventures that await us.As for me, I am also thinking of the farmers in my village.My experience here reminds me how important it is for researchers to communicate our knowledge to those who need it.Because by using the science we already have, we could probably bring my village and thousands like it into the world you and I take for granted every day.And that’s an impact every one of us can make!
But the question is, will we make the effort or not?
More than ever before, our society emphasizes science and innovation.But an equally important emphasis should be on distributing the knowledge we have to those whoneeded.Changing the world doesn’t mean that everyone has to find the next big thing.It can be as simple as becoming better communicators, and finding more creative ways to pass on the knowledge we have to people like my mom and the farmers in their local community.Our society also needs to recognize that the equal distribution of knowledge is a pivotal step of human development, and work to bring this into reality.And if we do that, then perhaps a teenager in rural China who is bitten by a spider will not have to burn his hand, but will know to seek a doctor instead.[I have just been to Buckingham Palace where Her Majesty the Queen has asked me to form a new government, and I accepted.[我刚去过白金汉宫,女王陛下要我组建新政府,我接受了。]
In David Cameron, I follow in the footsteps of a great, modern prime minister.Under David's leadership, the government stabilized the economy, reduced the budget deficit, and helped more people into work than ever before.[我沿戴维·卡梅伦的足迹前行,他是一位伟大、现代的首相。在卡梅伦的领导下,政府稳定了经济,降低了财政赤字,帮助比以往更多的人找到工作。]
But David's true legacy is not about the economy, but about social justice.From the introduction of same-sex marriage, to taking people on low wages out of income tax altogether.[但戴维真正的遗产并非搞经济,而是社会公正。他认可同性婚姻,让低收入人群彻底免交所得税。]
David Cameron has led a one nation government and it is in that spirit that I also plan to lead.Because not everybody knows this, but the full title of my party is the Conservative and Unionist Party.And that word Unionist is very important to me.It means we believe in the Union.That precious, precious bond betweenEngland, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.[卡梅伦领导了一国政府,我将本着这种精神执政。不是所有人都清楚,我所在的党的全称是保守和统一党。统一一词对我而言至关重要。这表明我相信统一,这是英格兰、苏格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰之间十分珍贵的结合。]
But it means something else that is just as important.It means that we believe in a Union not just of the nations of the United Kingdom, but between all of our citizens.Every one of us, whoever we are and wherever we are from.[可它还意味着同样重要的东西,它意味着我们不仅相信联合王国的统一,还相信所有公民的统一,每个人,不论我们是谁,我们从哪里来。]
That means fighting against the burning injustice that if you are born poor, you will die on average nine years earlier than others.If you're black, you're treated more harshly by the criminal justice system than if you are white.[那意味着要反对迫切的不公正。如果你出身贫穷,就比其他人少活九年;如果你是黑人,相比于白人会受到司法体系更严厉的惩罚。]
If you're a white, working-class boy, you're less likely than anyone else in Britain to go to university.If you're at a state school, you're less likely to reach the top professions than if you were educated privately.[如果你是白人工人阶级的男孩,在英国上大学的机会最低。如果你上国立学校,相比接受私立教育的人获得顶尖工作的机会要少。]
If you are a woman, you will earn less than a man.If you suffer from mental health problems, there's not enough help to hand.If you're young, you'll find it harder than ever before to own your own home.[如果你是一个妇女,你赚的比男人少。如果你有精神疾病,会缺少帮助。如果你是年轻人,会比前人更难拥有自己的住房。]
But the mission to make Britain a country that works for everyone means more than just fighting these injustices.[可让英国成为为所有人服务这一使命不仅意味着应对这些不公。]
If you're from an ordinary working-class family, life is much harder than many people in Westminster realize.You have the job, but you don't always have the job security.[如果你来自普通工人阶级家庭,生活比政府里许多人知道的更艰难。你有工作,可往往并不稳定。] You have your own home, but you worry about paying the mortgage.You can just about manage, but you worry about the cost of living and getting your kids into a good school.[你有房子,可担心付不起月供。你还能凑合活,却担心生活费增加,没法把孩子送进好学校。]
If you're one of those families.If you're just managing.I want to address you directly.I know you're working around the clock, I know you're doing your best, and I know that sometimes, life can be a struggle.The government I lead will be driven not by the interests of a privileged few, but by yours.[如果你来自这些家庭,如果你也凑合活着,我想要直接和你说:我知道你起早贪黑,我知道你竭尽全力,我知道生活有时是一种挣扎。我领导的政府不会被一小撮特权群体的利益驱使,而会因你的利益而奔走。]
We will do everything we can to give you more control over your lives.When we take the big calls, we'll think not of the powerful but you.When we pass new laws, we'll listen not to the mighty, but you.When it comes to taxes we'll prioritize not the wealthy, but you.When it comes to opportunity, we won't entrench the advantages of the fortunate few.[我们将尽一切所能让你更好掌控自己的生活。我们做重大决定时,我们想的不是那些有权之人,而是你们。我们通过新法时,我们不听那些有势之人,而是你们。当收税时,我们不会优先考虑那些有钱之人,而是你们。当提供机会时,我们不会只给予那些少数幸运之人。]
We will do everything we can to help anybody, whatever your background, to go as far as your talents will take you.[我们将尽一切所能帮助所有人,不论你背景如何,都让你能发挥所长。]
We are living through an important moment in our country's history.Following the referendum we face a time of great national change.And I know because we're Great Britain, we will rise to the challenge.[我们经历着国家历史上一个重要时刻。公投后我们面临着国家重大变革的时代。我知道因为我们是大不列颠,我们将迎接挑战。]
As we leave the European Union, we will forge a bold, new positive role for ourselves in the world.And we will make Britain a country that works not for a privileged few, but for every one of us.[我们离开了欧盟,我们会在世界上打造一个勇敢、积极的新角色。我们要让英国成为不为少数特权阶级服务的国家,一个为每个人服务的国家。] That will be the mission of the government I lead, and together, we will build a better Britain.[这是我领导政府的使命,我们一起努力,就会建成一个更美好的英国。]
第四篇:哈佛大学毕业典礼演讲
哈佛大学毕业典礼演讲
朱棣文
尊敬的Faust校长,哈佛集团的各位成员,监管理事会的各位理事,各位老师,各位家长,各位朋友,以及最重要的各位毕业生同学:
感谢你们,让我有机会同你们一起分享这个美妙的日子。
我不太肯定,自己够得上哈佛大学毕业典礼演讲人这样的殊荣。去年登上这个讲台的是,英国亿万身家的小说家J.K.Rowling女士,她最早是一个古典文学的学生。前年站在这里的是比尔?盖茨先生,他是一个超级富翁、一个慈善家和电脑天才。今年很遗憾,你们的演讲人是我,虽然我不是很有钱,但是至少我是一个书呆子。
我很感激哈佛大学给我荣誉学位,这对我很重要,也许比你们会想到的还要重要。要知道,在学术上,我是我们家的异类。我的哥哥在麻省理工学院得到医学博士,在哈佛大学得到哲学博士;我的弟弟在哈佛大学得到一个法律学位。我本人得到诺贝尔奖的时候,我想我的妈妈会高兴。但是,我错了。消息公布的那天早上,我给她打电话,她听了只说:‚这是好消息,不过我想知道,你下次什么时候来看我?‛如今在我们兄弟当中,我最终也拿到了哈佛学位,我想这一次,她会感到满意。在哈佛大学毕业典礼上发表演说,还有一个难处,那就是你们中有些人可能有意见,不喜欢我重复前人演讲中说过的话。我要求你们谅解我,因为两个理由。
首先,为了产生影响力,很重要的方法就是重复传递同样的信息。在科学中,第一个发现者是重要的,但是在得到公认前,最后一个做出这个发现的人也许更重要。
其次,一个借鉴他人的作者,正走在一条前人开辟的最佳道路上。哈佛大学毕业生、诗人爱默生曾经写下:‚我最好的一些思想,都是从古人那里偷来的。‛画家毕加索宣称‚优秀的艺术家借鉴,伟大的艺术家偷窃。‛那么为什么毕业典礼的演说者,就不适用同样的标准呢?
我还要指出一点,向哈佛毕业生发表演说,对我来说是有讽刺意味的,因为如果当年我斗胆向哈佛大学递交入学申请,一定会被拒绝。我的妻子Jean当过斯坦福大学的招生主任,她向我保证,如果当年我申请斯坦福大学,她会拒绝我。我把这篇演讲的草稿给她过目,她强烈反对我使用‚拒绝‛这个词,她从来不拒绝任何申请者。在拒绝信中,她总是写:‚我们无法提供你入学机会。‛我分不清两者到底有何差别。不过,那些大热门学校的招生主任总是很现实的,堪称‚拒绝他人的主任‛。很显然,我需要好好学学怎么来推销自己。
毕业典礼演讲都遵循古典奏鸣曲的结构,我的演讲也不例外。刚才是第一乐章——轻快的闲谈。接下来的第二乐章是送上门的忠告。这样的忠告很少有价值,几乎注定被忘记,永远不会被实践。但是,就像王尔德说的:‚对于忠告,你所能做的,就是把它送给别人,因为它对你没有任何用处。‛所以,下面就是我的忠告。第一,取得成就的时候,不要忘记前人。要感谢你的父母和支持你的朋友,要感谢那些启发过你的教授,尤其要感谢那些上不好课的教授,因为他们迫使你自学。从整体看,自学能力是优秀的文科教育中必不可少的,将成为你成功的关键。你还要去拥抱你的同学,感谢他们同你进行过的许多次彻夜长谈,这为你的教育带来了无法衡量的价值。当然,你还要感谢哈佛大学。不过即使你忘了这一点,校友会也会来提醒你。第二,在你们未来的人生中,做一个慷慨大方的人。在任何谈判中,都把最后一点点利益留给对方。不要把桌上的钱都拿走。在合作中,不要把荣誉留给自己。成功合作的任何一方,都应获得全部荣誉的90%。
电影《Harvey》中,Jimmy Stewart扮演的角色Elwood P.Dowd,就完全理解这一点。他说:‚多年前,母亲曾经对我说,‘Elwood,活在这个世界上,你要么做一个聪明人,要么做一个好人。’‛我做聪明人,已经做了好多年了。……但是,我推荐你们做好人。你们可以引用我这句话。
我的第三个忠告是,当你开始生活的新阶段时,请跟随你的爱好。如果你没有爱好,就去找,找不到就不罢休。生命太短暂,所以不能空手走过,你必须对某样东西倾注你的深情。我在你们这个年龄,是超级的一根筋,我的目标就是非成为物理学家不可。本科毕业后,我在加州大学伯克利分校又待了8年,读完了研究生,做完了博士后,然后去贝尔实验室待了9年。在这些年中,我关注的中心和职业上的全部乐趣,都来自物理学。
我还有最后一个忠告,就是说兴趣爱好固然重要,但是你不应该只考虑兴趣爱好。当你白发苍苍、垂垂老矣、回首人生时,你需要为自己做过的事感到自豪。物质生活和你实现的占有欲,都不会产生自豪。只有那些受你影响、被你改变过的人和事,才会让你产生自豪。
在贝尔实验室待了9年后,我决定离开这个温暖舒适的象牙塔,走进我眼中的‚真实世界‛——大学。我对贝尔实验室的看法,可以引用Mary Poppins的话,‚实际上十全十美‛。但是,我想离开那种仅仅是科学论文的生活。我要去教书,培育我自己在科学上的后代。
我在斯坦福大学有一个好友兼杰出同事Ted Geballe。他也是从伯克利分校去了贝尔实验室,几年前又离开贝尔实验室去了斯坦福大学。他对我们的动机做出了最佳描述: ‚在大学工作,最大的优点就是学生。他们生机勃勃,充满热情,思想自由,还没被生活的重压改变。虽然他们自己没有意识到,但是他们是这个社会中你能找到的最佳受众。如果生命中只有一段时间是思想自由和充满创造力,那么那段时间就是你在读大学。进校时,学生们对课本上的一字一句毫不怀疑,渐渐地,他们发现课本和教授并不是无所不知的,于是他们开始独立思考。从那时起,就是我开始向他们学习了。‛
我教过的学生、带过的博士后、合作过的年轻同事,都非常优秀。他们中有30多人,现在已经是教授了。他们所在的研究机构有不少是全世界第一流的,其中就包括哈佛大学。我从他们身上学到了很多东西。即使现在,我偶尔还会周末上网,向现在还从事生物物理学研究的学生请教。
我怀着回报社会的想法,开始了教学生涯。我的一生中,得到的多于我付出的,所以我要回报社会。这就引出了这次演讲的最后一个乐章。首先我要讲一个了不起的科学发现,以及由此带来的新挑战。它是一个战斗的号令,到了做出改变的时候了。
过去几十年中,我们的气候一直在发生变化。气候变化并不是现在才有的,过去60万年中就发生了6次冰河期。但是,现在的测量表明气候变化加速了。北极冰盖在9月份的大小,只相当于50年前的一半。1870年起,人们开始测量海平面上升的速度,现在的速度是那时的5倍。一个重大的科学发现就这样产生了。科学第一次在人类历史上,预测出我们的行为对50~100年后的世界有何影响。这些变化的原因是,从工业革命开始,人类排放到大气中的二氧化碳增加了。这使得地球的平均气温上升了0.8摄氏度。即使我们立刻停止所有温室气体的排放,气温仍然将比过去上升大约1度。因为在气温达到均衡前,海水温度的上升将持续几十年。
如果全世界保持现在的经济模式不变,联合国政府间气候变化专门委员会(IPCC)预测,本世纪末将有50%的可能,气温至少上升5度。这听起来好像不多,但是让我来提醒你,上一次的冰河期,地球的气温也仅仅只下降了6度。那时,俄亥俄州和费城以下的大部分美国和加拿大的土地,都终年被冰川覆盖。气温上升5度的地球,将是一个非常不同的地球。由于变化来得太快,包括人类在内的许多生物,都将很难适应。比如,有人告诉我,在更温暖的环境中,昆虫的个头将变大。我不知道现在身旁嗡嗡叫的这只大苍蝇,是不是就是前兆。
我们还面临另一个幽灵,那就是非线性的‚气候引爆点‛,这会带来许多严重得多的变化。‚气候引爆点‛的一个例子就是永久冻土层的融化。永久冻土层经过千万年的累积形成,其中包含了巨量的冻僵的有机物。如果冻土融化,微生物就将广泛繁殖,使得冻土层中的有机物快速腐烂。冷冻后的生物和冷冻前的生物,它们在生物学特性上的差异,我们都很熟悉。在冷库中,冷冻食品在经过长时间保存后,依然可以食用。但是,一旦解冻,食品很快就腐烂了。一个腐烂的永久冻土层,将释放出多少甲烷和二氧化碳?即使只有一部分的碳被释放出来,可能也比我们从工业革命开始释放出来的所有温室气体还要多。这种事情一旦发生,局势就失控了。
气候问题是我们的经济发展在无意中带来的后果。我们太依赖化石能源,冬天取暖,夏天制冷,夜间照明,长途旅行,环球观光。能源是经济繁荣的基础,我们不可能放弃经济繁荣。美国人口占全世界的3%,但是我们消耗全世界25%的能源。与此形成对照,全世界还有16亿人没有电,数亿人依靠燃烧树枝和动物粪便来煮饭。发展中国家的人民享受不到我们的生活,但是他们都看在眼里,他们渴望拥有我们拥有的东西。
这就是新的挑战。全世界作为一个整体,我们到底愿意付出多少,来缓和气候变化?这种变化在100年前,根本没人想到过。代际责任深深植根于所有文化中。家长努力工作,为了让他们的孩子有更好的生活。气候变化将影响整个世界,但是我们的天性使得我们只关心个人家庭的福利。我们能不能把全世界看作一个整体?能不能为未来的人们承担起责任?
虽然我忧心忡忡,但是还是对未来抱乐观态度,这个问题将会得到解决。我同意出任劳伦斯?伯克利国家实验室主任,部分原因是我想招募一些世界上最好的科学家,来研究气候变化的对策。我在那里干了4年半,是这个实验室78年的历史中,任期最短的主任,但是当我离任时,在伯克利实验室和伯克利分校,一些非常激动人心的能源研究机构已经建立起来了。
能够成为奥巴马施政团队的一员,我感到极其荣幸。如果有一个时机,可以引导美国和全世界走上可持续能源的道路,那么这个时机就是现在。总统已经发出信息,未来并非在劫难逃,而是乐观的,我们依然有机会。我也抱有这种乐观主义。我们面前的任务令人生畏,但是我们能够并且将会成功。
我们已经有了一些答案,可以立竿见影地节约能源和提高能源使用效率。它们不是挂在枝头的水果,而是已经成熟掉在地上了,就看我们愿不愿意捡起来。比如,我们有办法将楼宇的耗电减少80%,增加的投资在15年内就可以收回来。楼宇的耗电占我们能源消费的40%,节能楼宇的推广将使我们二氧化碳的释放减少三分之一。
我们正在加速美国这座巨大的创新机器,这将是下一次美国大繁荣的基础。我们将大量投资有效利用太阳能、风能、核能的新方法,大量投资能够捕获和隔离电厂废气中的二氧化碳的方法。先进的生物燃料和电力汽车将使得我们不再那么依赖外国的石油。
在未来的几十年中,我们几乎肯定会面对更高的油价和更严厉的二氧化碳排放政策。这是一场新的工业革命,美国有机会充当领导者。伟大的冰球选手Wayne Gretzky被问到,他如何在冰上跑位,回答说:‚我滑向球下一步的位置,而不是它现在的位置。‛美国也应该这样做。
奥巴马政府正在为美国的繁荣和可持续能源,打下新的基础。但是我们还有很多不知道的地方。这就需要你们的参与。在本次演讲中,我请求在座各位哈佛毕业生加入我们。你们是我们未来的智力领袖,请花时间加深理解目前的危险局势,然后采取相应的行动。你们是未来的科学家和工程师,我要求你们给我们更好的技术方案。你们是未来的经济学家和政治学家,我要求你们创造更好的政策选择。你们是未来的企业家,我要求你们将可持续发展作为你们业务中不可分割的一部分。
最后,你们是人道主义者,我要求你们为了人道主义说话。气候变化带来的最残酷的讽刺之一,就是最受伤害的人,恰恰就是最无辜的人——那些世界上最穷的人们和那些还没有出生的人。
这个最后乐章的完结部是引用两个人道主义者的话。第一段引语来自马丁〃路德〃金。这是1967年他对越南战争结束的评论,但是看上去非常适合用来评论今天的气候危机。
‚我呼吁全世界的人们团结一心,抛弃种族、肤色、阶级、国籍的隔阂;我呼吁包罗一切、无条件的对全人类的爱。你会因此遭受误解和误读,信奉尼采哲学的世人会认定你是一个软弱和胆怯的懦夫。但是,这是人类存在下去的绝对必需。……我的朋友,眼前的事实就是,明天就是今天。此刻,我们面临最紧急的情况。在变幻莫测的生活和历史之中,有一样东西叫做悔之晚矣。‛
第二段引语来自威廉〃福克纳。1950年12月10月,他在诺贝尔奖获奖晚宴上发表演说,谈到了世界在核战争的阴影之下,人道主义者应该扮演什么样的角色。
‚我相信人类不会仅仅存在,他还将胜利。人类是不朽的,这不是因为万物当中仅仅他拥有发言权,而是因为他有一个灵魂,一种有同情心、牺牲精神和忍耐力的精神。诗人、作家的责任就是书写这种精神。他们有权力升华人类的心灵,使人类回忆起过去曾经使他无比光荣的东西——勇气、荣誉、希望、自尊、同情、怜悯和牺牲。‛
各位同学,你们在我们的未来中扮演举足轻重的角色。当你们追求个人的志向时,我希望你们也会发扬奉献精神,积极发声,在大大小小各个方面帮助改进这个世界。这会给你们带来最大的满足感。
最后,请接受我最热烈的祝贺。希望你们成功,也希望你们保护和拯救我们这个星球,为了你们的孩子,以及未来所有的孩子。
第五篇:哈佛大学就职演讲
就职演讲常常会罗列一些新校长的具体构想或是计划。但是,当我在考虑今天意味着什么的时候,这样的罗列似乎过于束缚人,它们限制了而不是去放飞我们最富挑战性的想象力,限制了我们去思考我们最深远的责任和义务。
如果今天是超越普通日子的一天,如果今天是我们为数不多的、不仅是作为哈佛人聚集在一起、而是与一个更为广阔的学术、教学与学问的世界站在一起的一天,那么,现在就是哈佛以及像哈佛这类大学去思考的时候了:在这21世纪的第一个十年中,我们应该扮演什么样的角色。
大学的确是要承担责任的。但我们从事高等教育的人需要首先搞清楚,我们为了什么去承担责任。人们要求我们报告毕业率、研究生院的入学统计数字、标准考试的分数,目的是为了在大学评价中提高“附加值”,人们要看研究经费有多少,教师出版和发表论著的数量是多少。但这些硬性指标本身并不能说明所取得的成就,更不要提大学所渴望达到的目标了。虽然了解上述指标很重要,它们也可以说明我们事业中一些特别的部分内容。但我们的目的要比这些宏大得多,因此,要解释我们的责任感,也更加困难。
那么,让我斗胆提出一个定义来吧。一所大学的精神所在,是它要特别对历史和未来负责——而不单单或着仅仅是对现在负责。一所大学关乎学问(learning),影响终生的学问,将传统传承千年的学问,创造未来的学问。一所大学,既要回头看,也要向前看,其看的方法必须——也应该——与大众当下所关心的或是所要求的相对立。大学是要对永恒做出承诺,而这些投资会产生我们无法预测且常常是无法衡量的收益。大学是那些活生生的传统的管理员——在Widener图书馆与Houghton图书馆以及我们另外的88个图书馆,在Fogg与Peabody博物馆,在我们的古典学科的系科,在历史与文学的系科,都有活生生的传统。对于那些努力去证明这些传统不过是工具性的、不过是对某些当代需求有一定用处而已的说法和作法,我们会感觉很不舒服。恰恰相反,我们追寻传统,从某种程度上讲,是“为了它们自身”,因为正是它们,千百年来界定了我们何以为人类,而不是因为它们可以提升我们在全球的竞争力。
为了传统的自身
我们追寻它们,因为它们使我们的——无论是个人的还是社会的——洞察力增加了深度和广度,而这,则是我们在难以避免短视的当下所无法发现的。我们同样追寻它们,也因为正如我们需要食物和房屋生存一样,正如我们需要工作和寻求教育来改善我们的运气一样,我们作为人类同样需要寻找意义。我们努力去理解我们是谁,从哪里来,到哪里去,原因何在。对许多人来说,四年的大学生活不过是允许自己去自由自在地探索这类根本问题的一个插曲而已。但对意义的找寻,是没有尽头的探索,它在不断地阐释,不断地干扰和重新阐释现状,不断地在看,从不会满足于已有的发现。事实上,这就是所有学问的真谛,自然科学、社会科学和人文学科,概莫能外,因此,它也就成为了“大学是干什么的”之核心所在了。大学的意义在于不断的探索人类的意义,这一是个没有尽头的探索
就其本质而言,大学培育的是一种变化的文化甚至是无法控制的文化。这是大学为未来承担责任的核心。教育、研究、教学常常都是有关变化的——当人们学习时,它改变了个人;当我们的疑问改变我们对世界的看法时,它改变了世界;当我们的知识运用到政策之中时,它改变了社会。知识的扩充就意味着变化。但变化常常使人感到不舒服,因为它在你得到的同时也会失去,在你发现的同时也会迷失方向。然而,当面对未来时,大学必须去拥抱那不稳定的变化,它对人类理解世界的每一点进步都至关重要。
我们对未来的责任还对我们提出了更多的要求。大学既是哲学家也是科学家的所在地,这是独一无二的。对未来承担责任要求我们,要跨越地理与智力的界限。正如我们生活在田
野与学科正在缩小差距的时代,我们所居住的是一个逐渐跨越国家的世界,在这个世界里,知识本身就是最有力的连接体。
真理是渴望达到的目标,而不是占有物。而在这其中,我们——和所有以思考和自由询
问精神显示其特色的大学一道——向那些拥抱不容争辩的确定性的人们提出挑战乃至是提出警告。我们必须将自己置于不断质疑(doubt)这种令人不舒服的状态,使自己保持谦逊的态度,不断地相信:还有更多的知识需要我们去了解、更多的知识需要我们去讲授、更多的知识需要我们去理解。
上述所承担的种种责任既代表着一种特权,也代表着一种责任。我们能够生活在哈佛
这样一个理性自由、传统激扬、资源非凡的王国,因为我们正是被称为是“大学”的这样好奇而神圣的组织的一部分。我们需要更好地去理解和推进大学的目的——不单单是向总持批评立场的公众加以解释,更要为了我们自身的价值而坚持自我。我们必须要付诸行动,不仅是作为学生和教工、历史学家和计算机科学家、律师和医生,语言学家和社会学家,更是作为大学中的成员,我们对这个思想共同体负有责任。我们必须把彼此看作是相互负有责任的,因为由我们所组成的这个组织,反过来界定了我们的潜在价值。对未来承担责任包含着我们对学生所承担的特殊职责,因为他们是我们最重要的目的和财产。
想要说服一个国家或是世界去尊重——不要说去支持了——那些致力于挑战社会最根
本的思维设定,这很不容易。但这,恰恰就是我们的责任:我们既要去解释我们的目的,也
要很好地去达到我们的目的,这就是我们这些大学在这个新的世纪生存和繁荣的价值所在。哈佛大学不能孤独地为此奋斗。但我们所有人都知道,哈佛在其中扮演着特殊的角色。这就是我们今天在这里的原因,这就是她对我们意味深长的原因。
上一周,我拿到一个深黄褐色的信封,它是在1951年由哈佛的第23任校长詹姆斯•柯南特(James B.Conant)委托给哈佛档案馆保存下来的。他在留下的简短说明上称,请下一世纪开始时而“不是之前的”哈佛校长打开它。我撕开了这封神秘信件的封口,发现里面是我的前任留下的一封不同寻常的信。它的抬头是“我亲爱的先生。”柯南特写作时给人一种危险迫在眉睫的感觉。他担心第三次世界大战一触即发,这将“很有可能使我们所居住的城市包括剑桥在内遭到破坏。”
“我们都想知道,”他继续写到,“自由世界在未来的50年里会如何发展。”但是,当他想象哈佛的未来时,柯南特就由不详之兆转向了坚定的信念。如果“厄运的预言”证明了是错的,如果有一位哈佛校长能活着读到这封信,那么,柯南特就对哈佛的未来有信心。“你会收到这封信,会带领一个比我荣幸地执掌时更加繁荣、更有影响的大学。„„[哈佛]将坚持学术自由、容忍异端的传统,我确信是如此。”我们必须致力于此,确信他在未来也是正确的,我们必须共同拥有和支持他的这种信念。
柯南特的信,就像我们今天在此聚会一样,标志着在过去与未来之间,有一块引人注目的交汇地。在这个仪式上,我接受了我对他来自历史的声音所祈求的传统应付的责任。与此同时,我也与你们大家一道,确认了我对哈佛现在和未来的责任。正如柯南特所处的时代一样,我们也处于一个使我们有充足的理由忧虑不安的世界,我们面对的是不确定。但我们同样要对这所大学的目的和潜在发展保持一种不可动摇的信念,她终究会尽其所能地去设计从现在起之后的半个世纪内世界将会怎样。让我们拥抱那些责任和各种可能性吧;让我们分享它们“紧密相联„„如一体;”让我们开心地去从事这项工作吧,因为这样的一项任务是一种难以衡量的特权。
任何学生都不得在没有征得父母、监护人和个人导师的同意下买卖或交换超过6美分的物品。”
——哈佛大学第一任校长伊顿,此话后来成为了一条校规
“人类过去和现在的努力已经排除了知识路途中的许多障碍,让我们继续努力去排除剩余的障碍。”——哈佛大学第19任校长昆西对入学新生和毕业生的期望
“人类的希望取决于那些知识先驱者的思维,他们所思考的事情可能超过一般人几年、几代人甚至几个世纪。”
——哈佛大学第21任校长艾略特对哈佛教授们的期望
“每个受过教育的人都应该对什么事物都懂一点,但对个别事物懂得很多。”
——哈佛大学第22任校长洛厄尔的名言
“大学的荣誉,不在它的校舍和人数,而在于它一代又一代人的质量。”
——哈佛大学第23任校长科南特对哈佛大学办学方针的总结
“一个人是否具有创造力,是一流人才和三流人才的分水岭。”
——哈佛大学第24任校长普西对开发学生创造力意义的理解