Convocation: A Breath of Fresh Air

By Daniel F. Linsalata | Monday, October 4, 2004

Twice a year, the Dartmouth community gathers to witness regal spectacles that harken back to the days of Eleazar Wheelock and his predecessors at the grand universities in Oxford, Cambridge, Milan, and Paris. Of course, the procession of the faculty at Convocation and Commencement, resplendent in their coloured hoods and academic robes, preceded by Lord Dartmouth's Cup and mace, is merely an illusion, lip service to the traditions of the old academy. The sight of faculty wearing sneakers and jeans beneath their gowns, mortarboards held carelessly in hand, reminds everyone that the procession is simply a token gesture, designed to create a first (and last) impression that every significant tradition is not, in fact, being eviscerated, sacrificed one by one on the vaunted altar of 'progressive' education, sensitivity, and diversity. Alas, everything that happens in between these processions, which bookend students' careers on the Hanover plain, is a poignant reminder that few traditions remain.

Fortunately, the 2004 Convocation, marking the beginning of the College's two-hundred-thirty-fifth cycle was not all doom and gloom. Indeed, it was refreshingly just the opposite. President James Wright's speech, directed largely to the Class of 2008, focused not upon racial and ethnic diversity, nor 'white privilege,' but rather the validity of all opinions, so long as they are "sound and well-crafted." He went out of his way to state that dissenting opinions, both in and out of the classroom, are acceptable, as well as expected.

To reinforce the remaining shards of Dartmouth tradition, he assured the freshmen that they are now part of "a historic and special community, one physically rooted on this plain along the Connecticut River, even as it reaches round the girdled earth." In nearly the same breath, President Wright explained, "In recent years, I have talked about Dartmouth...as a place where the liberal arts provide the basis for a life well-lived. I have reflected upon the importance of diversity as a critical ingredient in the educational experience." Just as upperclassmen prepared to expel a collective groan and brace themselves for more of the oft-repeated rhetoric, President Wright stepped off the high podium of political correctness and inclusivity, and seemingly offered an olive branch to those who have been pushing so hard to knock it down. He concentrated on "two values central to our academic purpose: our commitment to freedom of expression and our obligation to foster here a true inclusive community."

Veering dramatically from the wish that all students toe the line and genuflect at the altar of postmodern education, he warned against the dangers of relying upon education to be comforting and reinforcing of one's own values; instead, students must "reach beyond [their] circle of comfort." While the necessity of freedom of speech is self-evident in an academic community, President Wright pointed out that an oft-forgotten "corollary of the freedom of speech is the freedom to criticize that which is said. And sometimes this freedom to disagree becomes an obligation....Academic communities at their best are places that challenge more than they reinforce."

While The Dartmouth Review has long been aware of the obligation to dissent, this speech marks the first acknowledgement of it by the College in recent memory. As Wright delved into the need for dissent and debate, it became gradually clear that he was addressing the faculty just as much as the students. He warned students that "politeness and tolerance need not lead you to a sort of intellectual or moral relativism that discourages you from challenging the ideas with which you disagree....Do not accept the uninformed or the glib or the foolish as having equally validity...with the position shaped by explicit values and principles." He cited the current Presidential campaign as an unfortunate example of the latter; partisan mudslinging in the midst of a battle of undefended opinions, with each side giving little consideration or response to the ideas and values of the other.

Just as the door for input from all sides seemed to open wide, and skeptics began to murmuer, "My God, he finally gets it," Wright issued a caveat, underlining the role of the College as a place to foster intellectual diversity and inclusivity—within certain bounds.

So the message became a bit muddled at the end. Ultimately, most walked away with the impression that it may not be necessary to walk around as a self-hating white drone, repeating "diversity" all day, but the basic programming is still in there. That is not to say that the fundamental principles laid out by President Wright are unreasonable by any stretch, but that their mention makes one flinch after finally hearing what intellectual conservatives (and all other who suffered through Shelby Grantham's English 5) have been waiting so long to hear. If nothing else, the speech signaled a pleasing change in the College's rhetoric; all that remains to be seen is if the faculty members, particularly those who are staunchly liberal, will buy into the proposition that dissenting opinions are equally valid.

On a day on which students received a glimpse at one of the greatest of the Old Traditions, they were relieved to learn that, failing though the Traditions might be, it is at least once again acceptable to lament their fall.

Convocation: A Breath of Fresh Air

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