Stories and letters in the March issue of PAW invoked “Princeton in the nation’s service” to support partisan versions of what Princeton and Princetonians should be doing (SPIA should be emphasizing left-wing policies, students should avoid careers in finance, etc.). I believe that this misunderstands the motto and its place within Princeton’s broader mission.
Princeton’s stated mission is to advance learning and prepare students for meaningful lives and careers. Both Princeton and Princetonians should flourish (Dei sub numine viget). This can be accomplished by building a company; pursuing a professional career; or taking on roles in teaching, research, or other areas. Princeton is not a school dedicated to producing civil servants or extreme altruists.
Within this context, Princeton hopes its graduates will pursue their careers with integrity and consideration for all, considering perspectives broader than their own and hopefully returning some of their surplus to benefit others, just as notables of ancient Greece were expected to support civic needs.
I believe that our country is undercut less by the views of those on the left or the right than by the animosity between them, and the consequent division into increasingly polar tribes driven to extremes by their disdain for each other. If Princeton wants to act in the nation’s service, it should help build the nation by teaching its graduates to understand and respect all views, including those that they don’t agree with, and to strive for consensus.
Partisan views, however well intended, are seldom in the nation’s service.
Stories and letters in the March issue of PAW invoked “Princeton in the nation’s service” to support partisan versions of what Princeton and Princetonians should be doing (SPIA should be emphasizing left-wing policies, students should avoid careers in finance, etc.). I believe that this misunderstands the motto and its place within Princeton’s broader mission.
Princeton’s stated mission is to advance learning and prepare students for meaningful lives and careers. Both Princeton and Princetonians should flourish (Dei sub numine viget). This can be accomplished by building a company; pursuing a professional career; or taking on roles in teaching, research, or other areas. Princeton is not a school dedicated to producing civil servants or extreme altruists.
Within this context, Princeton hopes its graduates will pursue their careers with integrity and consideration for all, considering perspectives broader than their own and hopefully returning some of their surplus to benefit others, just as notables of ancient Greece were expected to support civic needs.
I believe that our country is undercut less by the views of those on the left or the right than by the animosity between them, and the consequent division into increasingly polar tribes driven to extremes by their disdain for each other. If Princeton wants to act in the nation’s service, it should help build the nation by teaching its graduates to understand and respect all views, including those that they don’t agree with, and to strive for consensus.
Partisan views, however well intended, are seldom in the nation’s service.