An Address
To the Conval National Honor Society
Thursday November 2, 2006
Michael O'Leary
I would like to thank the National Honor Society members for asking me to speak tonight. Usually I avoid speeches at all costs, but I admire the NHS organization and also this particular group of students.
And I do have a concept to explore tonight: the nature of honor. Having precious little wisdom on the subject myself, I will be leaning on the words of my friends Montaigne, Seneca and Emerson, all men honored in their own times.
All societies in some way honor those who embody the virtues they hold dear. America often honors people for who they are and for what they have accomplished, but far too often it is for insignificant actions, or worse, mere celebrity. Montaigne felt that to acquire the virtue necessary to be honored, there must be some sacrifice involved, some level of struggle. After all, he said, it is as easy for the strong man to be strong as it is for the weak man to be weak. To resist temptation, he insisted, is very different from never having been tempted. Both may be sinless, but only one will be virtuous, and only one should be honored.
The students in the National Honor Society have been severely tempted by our culture and have, in Emerson's words, "gained the strength of the temptation they resisted." Our culture offers us non-stop, 24 hours a day entertainment and indulgence. It is so easy for our students to watch movies, play video games, use drugs for recreation and alcohol for fun. All of these pursuits lead them away from learning, from self-improvement, from acquiring culture.
Our NHS students have learned to discipline themselves, to make strong and clear priorities, to delay and contain the enjoyment of the temptations of our society to dedicate themselves to doing the best they can do in school and in life.
One of the things I admire most about the National Honor Society is that inclusion is so dependent upon character. People may be able to fake academic skills for a while, but a person's character cannot be faked for long because it is tested all the time.
We present our characters to the world everyday. We are judged by our integrity, our compassion, our reactions to obstacles and disappointments, to successes and joys. Our characters are on display in every class, in the cafeteria, on sports teams, in the halls, on dates and at parties. In school, while students concentrate on learning concepts, honing skills and obtaining knowledge, teachers are observing their characters every bit as much as their academic progress.
The students in The National Honor Society have withstood the scrutiny of their characters, have demonstrated their integrity, have shown consistent responsibility in their actions. In the crucible of the classroom, in the crucible of our culture, in the crucible of our fast-paced times, they have passed the test of character.
And character is so important. Emerson said that "character is higher than intellect." Think of it: "Character is higher than intellect," and this from one of America's greatest intellectuals. What he saw and knew is that while intelligence level is a gift of nature, character is not. Everyone can develop and maintain good character and no one can take it away. Indeed, Seneca asserted that an honorable man cannot be hurt by one less honorable, as long as he keeps his honor. He said we were born for virtue, but not with it. It must be acquired.
In our schools we do not officially measure or evaluate or assess our students' characters. Certainly there is some connection between one's character and the grade one receives on certain assignments, but the grade is always seen as an academic evaluation. Schools used to require citizenship grades but no more. In fact, character used to be the most important part of our country's education. Our students used to learn to read from the Bible, and some of the virtues of that great text subtlely would be embraced by students as they read from it year after year. Today, our students have had no such advantage. They have had to develop and defend their characters on their own, in their homes, on the playground and in their churches.
The word "character" comes from the Greek word for "engraving." Voltaire tells us that one's character is engraved on his soul early in life and is very difficult to change. He suggests that if a person is jealous, he can learn to control that jealousy, but he will always be a jealous person.
But, he also points out that if a person is taught to be honorable and virtuous early in life, then he will always tend toward those ends. With this in mind, I feel that the parents in this room tonight should be recognized for their part in the development of the character of their children. It is the parents who engraved their children's characters on their souls in the early years of their lives, and it is the parents who displayed their own characters in making the many sacrifices needed to do that.
Some of my non-teacher friends ask me how I can enjoy teaching after 31 years, and I always point out that as a teacher I get to spend a lot of time with enthusiastic, young people with good characters, and that it is exciting to discuss ideas and life with them. The NHS students in this room tonight are a large part of that population. Honorable students with integrity reward teachers daily without even trying.
As a way to perhaps have my Philosophy students begin to examine their lives, I often tell them that the history of the world, all that has happened since the creation of the universe, all the things and people who have lived and died, all the wars and inventions and suffering and dreams have happened to create this moment, right now, for them. I then ask them what they are doing with this moment. Are they putting it off for the weekend when they can be entertained? Are they hoping it passes quickly so they can do something else? Or are they embracing it, participating fully in each moment, and realizing how precious it is.
The students accepted into the National Honor Society have shown they have the character and wisdom to embrace each and every moment and are willing to sacrifice to honor the moments they have been given.
And for that we honor them tonight.
Thank you.
