Last spring, author george saunders gave a graduation speech at syracuse about kindness that quickly went viral. George saunders extols the virtues of kindness in 20. Graduation season and robin is getting in on the act in dallas. Congratulations, by the way new york times bestseller this inspiring meditation on kindness from the author of lincoln in the bardo is based on his popular commencement address. Not the one given earlier this year by the writer george saunders at syracuse university, where he teaches. Saunders best commencement speech 20 business insider. Maybe it was the excitement or the heat a lack of air conditioning in my college graduation hall left lots of people feeling woozy, but these addresses dont really stand out. Down through the ages, a traditional form has evolved for this type of speech, which is. George saunders address to syracuse grads has gone viral. Here is the full transcript and video of george saunders commencement address to syracuses class of 20. Some old fart, his best years behind him, who, over the course of his life.
George saunders moving commencement speech at su goes. George saunderss some thoughts on kindness brought to. Congratulations, by the way george saunders the examined life. For my rhetoric artifact, i choose a commencement speech by george saunders to the syracuse graduating class of 20. Failures of kindness by george saunders james clear. He talks about why the speech touched a nerve, and why he worries that. He also contributed a weekly column, american psyche, to the weekend magazine of the guardian between 2006 and 2008. Rcl 4 george saunders commencement address going somewhere. Jul 31, 20 its long past graduation season, but we recently learned that george saunders delivered the convocation speech at syracuse university for the class of 20, and george was kind enough to send it our way and allow us to reprint it here. In his speech, he makes one critical request of the students in attendance.
George saunders born december 2, 1958 is an american writer of short stories, essays, novellas, childrens books, and novels. His writing has appeared in the new yorker, harpers, mcsweeneys, and gq. And here comes my responsibility as commencement speaker. Saunders makes the case for a life lived with purposeful kindness and unselfishness at the forefront, and does so in his amusing, charming and eloquent style. George saunders kindness speech at syracuse university goes. Syracuse university college of arts and sciences undergraduate convocation ceremony. Congratulations, by the way by george saunders penguin. Aug 04, 20 the writer gave a convocation speech at syracuse university earlier this year. It was a new york times best seller in less than one month saunders grew up in a southwest suburb of chicago, called oak forest. Not only were aaron and george particularly eloquent, theyre also syracuse people. Below is the full transcript of george saunders commencement address to syracuse s class of 20.
On may 11 at the carrier dome, writer, professor and class of 88 alumnus george saunders delivered the convocation speech for the college of arts and sciences at syracuse university. Its a particular pleasure to welcome former governor deval patrick of the college class of 1978 and the harvard law school class of 1982. George saunderss graduation speech transcript is posted on the new york times website. George saunders to turn his syracuse university speech. It was delivered this summer by the master of the perfectly wrought, perfectly weird short story, george saunders, to the class of 20 at syracuse university, where saunders teaches. Three months after george saunders gave a graduation address at syracuse university, a transcript of that speech was posted on the website of the new york times, where its simple, uplifting message struck a deep chord. As always, but especially now during covid19, you can turn to us for your next pantry meal, food shopping tips, or to connect with our team and community. He delivered the speech in the circumstances of the graduation ceremony of the college of arts and sciences at syracuse university. Saunders s advice to the class of 20 went viral after the new york times reprinted his speech later that summer. George saunders extols the virtues of kindness in 20 speech to syracuse university grads.
Pulitzer prizewinning author david remnick, editor of the new yorker, delivered the commencement address for syracuse universitys 160th commencement ceremony. Commencement speech by new yorker editor david remnick. The best commencement speeches, ever back to all speeches. In 20, celebrated author george saunders delivered the convocation address at syracuse universitys commencement. George saunders to turn his syracuse university speech into. When syracuse asked saunders to deliver a commencement address, he procrastinated. Three months after george saunders gave a graduation address at syracuse university, a transcript of that speech was posted on the website of the new york. Random house published the speech in a book, congratulations, by the way.
George saunders at syracuse university, may 11, 20. Aug 02, 20 george saunders g88, professor of english and author of the new york times bestseller tenth of december random house, 20, delivered the following speech at the college of arts and sciences. On tuesday it became a 64page book called congratulations, by. Inspirational graduation quotes from the 15 best commencement. Commencement 2017 speech transcripts and video suny. Youtube although its been almost three months since author george saunders spoke at syracuse universitys commencement ceremony, his speech recently began to receive a lot of attention. Some thoughts on kindness, based on a commencement speech he gave at syracuse university. Aug 03, 2015 are we being kind enough to donald trump. George saunders graduation speech at syracuse 20 genius. George saunders, the speaker, is also a professor who teaches creative. But more deeply, it is a regret of meanness, a call for kindness, and a study of legacy. Saunders delivered this speech about failures of kindness as the commencement address to syracuse universitys class of 20. He has received several awards for his fiction over the years and, in 2017, he received the man booker prize for his novel lincoln in the bardo. Aug 03, 20 george saunders address to syracuse grads has gone viral.
In her 23rd and final commencement speech as first lady, michelle obama urged the class of. Graduation speech by george saunders to become a book. George saunders speech, great commencement speech, great commencement speeches, great graduation speech, great graduation speeches. The best commencement address of 20 with the best graduation quote on selflesness and the importance of kindness. The main topic of george saunders speech is the importance of kindness. George saunders delivered the commencement address at syracuse university in the spring of 20.
Vice president biden, a syracuse law graduate, talked about the effect that the university. George saunders is an accomplished writer who puts little store in his accomplishments. Last year at convocation george saunders spoke of the virtue of kindness. Sep 25, 20 for my rhetoric artifact, i choose a commencement speech by george saunders to the syracuse graduating class of 20. Best graduation speeches of all time, from jfk to steve. Last year, saunders delivered the convocation speech for syracuse university where he teaches writing. Vice president joe biden delivered the commencement address to graduating students at syracuse university. George saunders commencement speech at syracuse 20 food52. George saunders convocation address for syracuse university college of arts and sciences. Aug 08, 20 not the one given earlier this year by the writer george saunders at syracuse university, where he teaches.
The 146th annual meeting of the harvard alumni association at the 364th commencement of harvard university. Its long past graduation season, but we recently learned that george saunders delivered the convocation speech at syracuse university for the. In his often lighthearted commencement address, george saunders, author of the new york times bestseller the tenth of december, delivered a poignant speech that was packed with valuable thoughts for graduates and everyone else, too. Ive been part of a few graduating classes and dont remember a single graduation speech given on those big days. George saunders begins his commencement address at syracuse university with a joke. If you love graduation quotes, youll adore these 20 inspiring oscar acceptance speech quotes.
It was a new york times best seller in less than one month. Best graduation speeches of all time, from jfk to steve jobs. Within days, it had been shared more than one million times. Author george saunders talks about his new book, congratulations, by the way. George saunderss some thoughts on kindness brought to life. What i regret most in my life are failures of kindness. Here are the highlights from his speech, from a transcript. George saunderss advice to graduates the new york times. Three months after george saunders gave a graduation address at syracuse university. In this part of the study guide, we will summarize the main points of our analysis of george saunders commencement address. Apr 24, 2014 in 20, celebrated author george saunders delivered the convocation address at syracuse universitys commencement. And now, with this graduation speech, an internet superstar. Congratulations, by the way is a slightly expanded version of the commencement speech george saunders gave at syracuse university on may 11, 20 and its truly wunnerful. New york times bestseller this inspiring meditation on kindness from the author of lincoln in the bardo is based on his popular commencement address.
A professor at syracuse university, saunders won the national magazine. Stop what youre doing right now and read the commencement speech thats fixing to break the internet please. Three months after george saunders gave a graduation address at syracuse university, a transcript of that speech was posted on the website of the new york times, where its simple, uplifting message struck. Syracuse university commencement speech gets reimagined as a 2minute animated video.
Feb 14, 2017 three months after george saunders gave a graduation address at syracuse university, a transcript of that speech was posted on the website of the new york times, where its simple, uplifting message struck a deep chord. Check out our handpicked selection of commencement addresses, going back to 1774. George saunders touching graduation speech, the importance of kindness. Last year, george saunders gave a commencement speech at syracuse that was published by the new york times and shared far and wide. May 11, 2014 as most of you know, syracuse has been the scene of two of the most celebrated speeches delivered anywhere in recent years, speeches by two gifted writers, aaron sorkin and george saunders. He claims that the kind of speech he is going to deliver is usually delivered by someone old and uninteresting, after which he claims that he fits the description.
The 9 best commencement speeches since the year 2005. George saunders on learning to writeand writing to learn. New york george saunders, bestselling author, professor and syracuse university class of 1988 alumnus, is turning his recent carrier dome graduation speech that went viral into a book. George saunders commencement speech on kindness now in. May 20, 2018 here is the full transcript and video of george saunders commencement address to syracuses class of 20. In the interest of confidentially, her convocation speech name will be ellen. Since, according to me, your life is going to be a gradual process of becoming kinder and more loving. George saunders delivered the commencement speech at sus college of arts and sciences, where he is a professor, on may 11, 20. Listen to a twominute clip of writer george saunders speech to syracuse university grads from 20 or read the text below.
Saunderss advice to the class of 20 went viral after the new york times reprinted his speech later that summer. George saunders kindness speech at syracuse university. Transcript for george saunders kindness speech at syracuse university goes viral coming up tex on our heat index. The man giving that advice, george saunders, syracuse university professor, gifted writer. George saunders is an american writer and winner of the man booker prize for fiction for his novel lincoln in the bardo. He delivered the speech in the circumstances of the graduation ceremony of the college of arts and sciences at syracuse university george saunders, the speaker, is also a professor who teaches.
Its long past graduation season, but we recently learned that george saunders delivered the convocation speech at syracuse university for the class of 20, and george was kind enough to send it our way and allow us to reprint it here. The writer gave a convocation speech at syracuse university earlier this year. It focuses primarily on kindness, and he dives into it from a unique perspective. He has been a professor of creative writing at syracuse since 1997. George saunders convocation address for syracuse university. These are the qualities he extols, in his typically droll manner, in a graduation speech he delivered to the 20 graduating class at syracuse university. Best graduation speech 20 george saunders syracuse. He gave a beautiful speech about kindness at the syracuse university commencement in 20. Thanks to reader harvey freedenberg, who originally told me about this speech.
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