J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement

Summary

In this commencement address, the speaker reflects on the benefits of failure and the importance of imagination. Drawing from personal experiences, including overcoming poverty and failure, the speaker highlights how adversity can lead to self-discovery and growth. They emphasize that true success is not about accumulating achievements but about understanding oneself and empathizing with others. The speech concludes by encouraging graduates to use their unique positions to make a positive impact on the world and to value lifelong friendships.

Takeaways

• 🙏 Delivering a commencement address is an honor, though it comes with anxiety.
• 😅 Most people don't remember their commencement speeches, which eases the pressure.
• 💪 Failure, while difficult, can lead to profound personal growth and understanding.
• 🧠 Imagination is crucial not only for creativity but also for empathy and understanding others.
• 😔 The speaker experienced significant failure, including a failed marriage and poverty, but rebuilt her life on this foundation.
• 🎓 Academic success is important, but life lessons like resilience and empathy are invaluable.
• 📚 The speaker chose to follow her passion for writing despite parental expectations to pursue a more practical career.
• 🌍 Human empathy and imagination are powerful tools for positive change in the world.
• 👥 Strong, enduring friendships formed during university years are invaluable.
• 💡 Life is not measured by length but by the quality and meaning of experiences.

Q & A

Who is delivering the commencement address, and to whom is it being addressed?

The commencement address is being delivered by an unnamed speaker to the members of the Harvard Corporation, the Board of Overseers, faculty members, proud parents, and graduates.

What does the speaker joke about when starting the speech?

The speaker jokes about the fear and nausea experienced at the thought of giving the commencement address, leading to weight loss, and likens the event to the world's largest Gryffindor reunion.

How does the speaker reflect on their own graduation and the commencement speaker of that time?

The speaker reflects that they cannot remember a single word from their own graduation's commencement speaker, Baroness Mary Warnock, which helps the speaker proceed without fear of inadvertently influencing the graduates.

What are the two main themes the speaker chooses to discuss in the speech?

The speaker chooses to discuss the benefits of failure and the crucial importance of imagination.

How does the speaker describe their career aspirations at the time of their own graduation?

The speaker was ambitious about becoming a novelist, despite their parents' concerns that an overactive imagination would not pay a mortgage or secure a pension.

What personal experience does the speaker share regarding failure?

The speaker shares that seven years after graduation, they experienced an epic failure, including an exceptionally short-lived marriage, joblessness, and poverty.

What important lesson did the speaker learn from experiencing failure?

The speaker learned that failure meant stripping away the inessential, leading them to focus on what truly mattered to them, ultimately using failure as the foundation to rebuild their life.

How does the speaker define the importance of imagination?

The speaker defines imagination as the uniquely human capacity to envision what is not and to empathize with others, enabling invention, innovation, and understanding of experiences different from one's own.

What experience does the speaker share from working at Amnesty International?

The speaker shares their experience of reading letters and testimonies from victims of totalitarian regimes while working at Amnesty International, which deeply informed their understanding of human suffering and empathy.

What final hope does the speaker express for the graduates?

The speaker hopes that the graduates will form lasting friendships and that they will remember the value of living a good life, as expressed by Seneca: 'As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters.'