Toni Morrison – 2011 commencement speech at Rutgers

Peggy Sax:  September 04, 2011

Someone just sent me a very thought provoking quote by Toni Morrison in her 2011 commencement speech at Rutgers Univesity that I want to share with you. It’s about not settling for the pursuit of happiness.  She puts words to what I have wanted to say for a long time. Here is the quote as addressed to new graduates:

    …. the narrative of a worthy life is yours to write. I have often wished that Jefferson had not used that phrase, “the pursuit of happiness”, as the third right—although I understand in the first draft was “life, liberty and the pursuit of property.” Of course, I would have been one of those properties one had the right to pursue, so I suppose happiness is an ethical improvement over a life devoted to the acquisition of land; acquisition of resources; acquisition of slaves. Still, I would rather he had written life, liberty and the pursuit of meaningfulness or integrity or truth.

I know that happiness has been the real, if covert, goal of your labors here. I know that it informs your choice of companions, the profession you will enter, but I urge you, please don’t settle for happiness. It’s not good enough. Of course, you deserve it. But if that is all you have in mind—happiness—I want to suggest to you that personal success devoid of meaningfulness, free of a steady commitment to social justice, that’s more than a barren life, it is a trivial one. It’s looking good instead of doing good.

I just spent the last 1/2 hour listening to the entire speech – it’s so invigorating!:

And here is the  transcript: https://llanoralleyne.com/2011/05/toni-morrisons-commencement-address-to-rutgers-university-class-of-2011/

Peggy