<p>So Judith Butler did not ruin the spirit or fun at the Grinnell graduation, but she did give a talk which could have been lifted from one of her classes, there was nothing 'commencing' about it. Truthfully, we felt like the message was not unreasonable in many ways, but we wanted to kill the messenger.</p>
<p>No matter, she was a blip. The day was sparkly and wonderful. Grinnell graduated (Out of about 340 graduates) 3 African American women majoring in PHysics! Largest cohort in the nation by their reckoning..The top 2 students were women majoring in science/math. One was a NIgerian young woman who clearly had loved her 4 years in the cornfields!</p>
<p>WE loved our visit...all of it. It is a very unique group of kids in this era, I dare to say. The high percentage of internationals was very impressive, especially since they seem so integrated with the school as a whole. Plus, the big message that we are all responsible for each other,,,and the mission of Grinnell ringing through at every step.</p>
<p>Hope all those of you who are planning to attend will have the same quality experience my son and his friends had. </p>
<p>Well, tastes vary, but I LOVED Judith Butler's speech. Instead of the usual worn-out platitudes that would have sent me to sleep (and which some of the other speakers provided), she delivered an intellectual, thought-provoking, very socially-aware investigation of the politics of mourning, looking at how closely our reactions to deaths of Sept 11, Iraq etc are politically determined. Far meatier than the usual commencement fare--but then the graduates are a pretty extraordinary, intellectual, socially conscious bunch.</p>
<p>The crowd reception was definitely lukewarm. I think the talk was informative, but not inspirational in any way- and this was a crowd ready to be inspired. There was element of her talk which reminded me of a part of the Passover Seder in which the 'wicked child' asks why 'you' do this and that (rather than we) thus excluding themselves from the participation. </p>
<p>I felt Ms. Butler did the same- I had the strong sense that she held herself as a morally more evolved person than the rest of us.... As someone who has lived 15 years in a sprawling, Moslem dominated Asian city, I have constantly confronted the issues of which she spoke. Has she, from the lofty heights of Berkeley's philosophy department 'walked the walk' of being able to live with 'precarious' nature of advantage- and doing something about it? How many dying Asian children has she paid for the chemotherapy for, how many disadvantaged teens has she sent to university?</p>
<p>Where was she on the day after 9/11. Surely not where I, or my graduating Grinnell student were (confined to home by US embassy decree). </p>
<p>Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I did not fly all the way around the world for commencement to be lectured at. </p>
<p>As I said, the students themselves, and at least a few of the other speakers, were inspiring enough...plus Iowa on a gorgeous, gorgeous day!!</p>
<p>I liked the text of Judith Butler’s speech, but maybe for the reason anitaw did NOT like it: Having barely ever left my hometown, much less lived on another continent, I need to be pushed occasionally (“lectured at,” I guess) to see the world from a more global perspective and respond to the poverty and suffering that is so pervasive beyond the boundaries of my own life. I will say, however, that although I found the content of Ms. Butler’s talk to be interesting and worthwhile, her delivery was very dry, making it difficult at times to focus intently on its message.</p>