“Dear graduates! Apply sunscreen!” The speech that began with these words spread all over the Internet and almost became the anthem of millennials. Australian director Baz Luhrmann turned it into the video Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen), and Alex Dubas and Yolka set its translation to music in the video “On the Benefits of Sunscreen.” This speech is erroneously attributed to Kurt Vonnegut. In fact, its real author is American journalist Mary Schmich. The message was published in the Herald Tribune on July 1, 1997. We will reproduce the real speech of the real Vonnegut below. But this isn't the only inspirational speech you'll enjoy. Fintolk has prepared a selection of the best of them for you.
Kurt Vonnegut. MIT commencement address, 1998
The American science fiction writer's speech was dedicated to money. Or rather, their conditional value in our lives. Kurt Vonnegut gave the example of the Nobel Prize: according to the idea, the million-dollar award was supposed to make scientists rich and independent of public opinion and political pressure. However, by the time the speech was delivered, the amount had become almost insignificant, comparable in size to the salary of a local team football player for one season. So Vonnegut encouraged graduates to focus less on making money and more on filling their lives with meaning.
“My speech was written specifically for this ceremony. But I always end any address to graduates with a story about my uncle Alex, my father’s younger brother. After graduating from Harvard, Alex Vonnegut worked honestly as an insurance agent in Indianapolis. He was a well-read, educated man. Uncle Alex always hated that people rarely noticed when they were truly happy. He was quite good at it himself. We could sip lemonade, escaping the heat under the canopy of an apple tree, and my uncle would interrupt the conversation with the words: “If this isn’t great, then what is?” I hope you will do the same throughout your life. When everything is fine and serene for you, stop and ask out loud: “If this isn’t great, then what is?” Raise your hands if you promise. This was my first request. I want to ask you something else. I ask this not only of the graduates, but of everyone here, even Malcolm Gillies. I want you to raise your hands again after I ask, “How many of you had a teacher (whether in high school or college) who made you realize how exciting life is, who made you feel proud to live in this world?’ Put your hands down and say this person’s name to everyone sitting or standing next to you. Done? Thank you. If that’s not great, then what is?”
"Get into the person"
“The meeting place cannot be changed” (1979), director - Stanislav Govorukhin
Still from the film “The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed” (1979)
Soviet investigator Gleb Zheglov understands people no worse than Dale Carnegie - he manages to extract information from the most intractable witnesses. At the request of his young mentee, Volodya Sharapov, Gleb shares his rules of successful communication - they remain relevant even more than thirty years later.
“So, rule one - remember, I won’t repeat it. Solidify it like a drill code. Always smile when talking to people. Understood? People love it. And now the second rule - be attentive to the person and try to encourage him to talk about himself. And how to do it? But for this there is a third rule: find a topic that interests him. Rule four - show sincere interest in the person. Delve into him, find out how he lives. This is, of course, difficult. In general, you will have to sweat. But if you can do it, he will tell you everything.”
Steve Jobs. Stanford University commencement address, 2005
The speech of Apple creator Steve Jobs quickly became the most iconic and quoted of all speeches for graduates of higher education institutions, with the exception of perhaps the first one - about the benefits of sunscreen. Jobs said that when you are young, it is difficult to put together all the dots that you pass in your destiny. This can only be done by looking back. Therefore, the author of the speech urged to trust in fate and rely on it. And also, love what you do with all your heart.
“When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like this: “If you live every day as if it were your last, someday you will be right.” The quote made an impression on me, and since then, for 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every day and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And As soon as the answer was “No” for several days in a row, I knew something needed to change. Remembering that I will die soon is the most important tool that helps me make difficult decisions in my life. Because everything else - other people's opinions, all this pride, all this fear of embarrassment or failure - all these things fall in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering death is the best way to avoid thinking that you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no longer any reason for you not to follow your heart.”
“You can’t make someone happy against your will”
“Pokrovsky Gate” (1982), director - Mikhail Kozakov
Still from the film “Pokrovsky Gate” (1982)
In a communal apartment in the 1950s, the touching and helpless writer Lev Khobotov tries to get out of the influence of his domineering ex-wife, stop being afraid of life and defend the right to new love. In this he is helped by the daring graduate student historian Kostik, who, despite his youth, understands life much better than most of his respectable neighbors. A private family melodrama grows into a story about the importance of inner freedom and what usually prevents it.
“Calm. Youth is a moment. Before you know it, I'll change. And not for the better. How reasonable I will be, how moderate I will become... Young, I repent. And yet, believe the historian: you cannot make someone happy against your will.”
HUBSpeakers magazine No. 1 (1) February 2022, page 74
Steven Spielberg. Harvard University commencement address, 2016
In his youth, the future director dropped out of college because he decided to start a career in cinema. But when Spielberg was already over 50, he returned to this college and received a degree. He dedicated his speech to the importance of finding yourself, your purpose, the value of love and friendship. He called on the graduates to fight hatred and inequality in all spheres of life, to bring humanity to the masses and to devote all their efforts to finding a common “we” for humanity.
“I dropped out of college because I knew exactly what I was going to do. Some of you also know what you will be doing. But some of you don't know this. Or maybe he knew before, but now he doubts the correctness of his choice. Maybe you're sitting right now wondering how to tell your parents that you want to be a doctor, not a comedy writer. In cinema, the choice you have to make is what we call a “turning point” (choice point, character defining moment) for a character. You're very familiar with these moments - when in Star Wars Rey realizes that the Force is with her, or when Indiana Jones overcomes his fear of jumping into a pile of snakes. There are plenty of these defining character moments in a two-hour movie, but in real life you encounter them every day. Life is one big series of such decisive moments. (...) Because today you are becoming the generation that future generations will rely on. And I have modeled the future many times in my films, but it is you who will determine what it will actually be like. Will it be peaceful and fair? Finally, I wish you all a Hollywood “happy ending.” I hope that you will escape from the tyrannosaurus, catch the criminal, and for the sake of your parents, now and then, just like the Alien, you will always return home. Thank you".
“Education for All” by Cameron Allen Cameron Allen. Education for all
Level: Intermediate
This is a short and simple speech about why education should be available to everyone on Earth. It is pronounced by a child, so there are no complex words or complex sentences.
It is also a great example of an informational speech. The speaker presents his main idea and supporting facts clearly and clearly basic concepts and terms to the audience along the way .
The speech is perfect for both listening practice and developing oral skills: it is short, but at the same time full of useful information. It's also a great example of an American accent .
John Fitzgerald Kennedy. American University commencement address, 1963
This was a rather difficult year for the foreign policy of the USA and the USSR. Countries were on the verge of nuclear war. In 1962, the USSR began deploying missiles in Cuba, and the United States responded by warning of “serious consequences for the Soviets.” The USSR said that the missiles were needed for defense, and in turn accused the United States of planning an attack on Cuba. Relations were strained to the limit. The situation was resolved when the countries managed to agree: the USSR withdrew the missiles from the island, and the United States promised not to interfere in the state affairs of the Cuban Republic and removed its missiles from Turkey. John Kennedy's striking response to Nikita Khrushchev's peace initiatives was this speech to graduates of the American University. That same month, the United States and the Soviet Union signed an agreement to establish a “hotline,” a direct telephone and teletype communication line between Moscow and Washington to prevent the accidental outbreak of war.
“No government, no social system is so sinister as to consider a people devoid of merit. We Americans find communism deeply abhorrent as a system that denies personal freedom and self-respect. But we can still respect the Russian people for their many achievements in science and space, in economic and industrial development, in culture, as well as for their brave exploits. Among the many similarities shared by the peoples of our two countries, none is more pronounced than our mutual aversion to war. A virtual exception in relations between the world's major powers is the fact that we have never gone to war with each other. And no other state in the history of wars suffered such losses as the Soviet Union suffered during the Second World War. At least 20 million lives were lost. Countless millions of homes and farms were burned or looted. Today, if a new total war breaks out for one reason or another, both of our countries will become the main targets. It sounds ironic, but it is an absolutely certain fact that the two most powerful powers are in grave danger of destruction. Everything we have built, everything we have worked for will be destroyed in the first 24 hours. (...) So let us not turn a blind eye to our differences, but let us pay attention to our common interests and to the means by which these differences can be eliminated. And if we find ourselves unable now to put an end to our differences, we can at least help ensure that our differences do not threaten peace. Because ultimately the most important thing is that we all live on this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all care about the future of our children. And we are all mortal."
Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
In July 1863, the largest battle in North American history took place - the Battle of Gettysburg. Harvard University President Edward Everett was invited to speak at the opening ceremony of a soldiers' cemetery in Pennsylvania. At that time he was a popular speaker among the people.
Photo source: history.com
Everett's speech was listed as the main speech on the program, and someone from Congress was scheduled to speak after him. But due to the postponement of the ceremony, all candidates refused. Therefore, the organizers turned to the president.
Against the backdrop of Everett's two-hour speech, rich in references to current issues and images, Abraham Lincoln's speech seemed completely minimalistic. It took two minutes and 272 words.
The President spoke about the significance of the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War and the building of democracy.
Lincoln called the democratic principles of true equality, proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence, the most important for building a unified state, where every citizen will be equally important and valuable.
We who live must devote ourselves to the great task still before us - to take from these highly honored dead an even greater commitment to the cause to which they remained fully and completely faithful, to be filled with the conviction that they did not die in vain, that our nation, with God's help, will be reborn in freedom and that the power of the people, by the will of the people and for the people, will not disappear from the face of the Earth.
The text of the Gettysburg Address is engraved on the interior wall of the marble Lincoln Memorial in Washington, included in anthologies, and every American schoolchild knows it by heart.
Joseph Brodsky. University of Michigan commencement address, 1988
The speech of the Russian poet Joseph Brodsky to American students was divided into six conventional parts: he called for loving and learning your native language, respecting your parents, not relying on politicians and the state, being modest, not taking the position of a victim and not paying attention to those who are trying make your life miserable.
“And now and in the future, try to be kind to your parents. If this sounds too much like “Honor thy father and thy mother,” oh well. All I'm saying is, try not to rebel against them, for in all likelihood they will die before you, so you can spare yourself at least this source of guilt, if not grief. If you must rebel, rebel against those who are not so easily hurt. Parents are too close a target (just like brothers, sisters, wives or husbands); the distance is such that you cannot miss. Rebellion against parents, with all its I-will-not-take-a-penny-from-you, is essentially an extremely bourgeois thing, because it gives the rebel the highest satisfaction, in this case, mental satisfaction given by conviction. The later you take this path, the later you will become a spiritual bourgeois; that is, the longer you remain a skeptic, a doubter, an intellectually dissatisfied person, the better for you. On the other hand, of course, this don't-take-a-penny thing makes practical sense, since your parents will in all likelihood bequeath everything they have to you, and the lucky rebel will end up with the entire fortune. In other words, rebellion is a very effective form of saving. Although the interest is unprofitable; and I would say leads to bankruptcy.”
Gender Equality Speech by Emma Watson Emma Watson. Talking about gender equality
Level: Intermediate
Emma Watson is a young but already very famous actress, whom we know for her role as Hermione in the Harry Potter films. She is also known as a goodwill ambassador for the international organization UN Women.
Emma Watson's speech is intended to both enlighten and convince men of the value of feminism, that is, the movement for equal rights and opportunities for men and women.
In her speech, Emma alternates generalizations with examples from her own life, which makes her very convincing . In addition, her speech is an example of excellent British pronunciation .
Jim carrey. Speech to graduates of Maharishi University of Management, 2014
“As someone who has already done what you are about to do, I can tell you from experience that the influence you have on others is the most valuable currency there is. Because everything you gain in life will rot and fall apart, and all that will be left of you is what was in your heart. My choice to free people, to free them from worries, brought me to the top. Look where I am, look what should I do? Wherever I went... I did what made people show their best selves. I was on top, but the only one I didn't free was myself. And that’s when my search for identity deepened. I wondered who I would be without my fame. Who would I be if I said something people didn't want to hear, or if I challenged their expectations of me? What if I showed up to a party without a Mardi Gras mask and refused to flash my breasts for a handful of beans? I'll give you a minute to erase that image from your head. You guys are so ahead of the game. You already know who you are. And this peace, the peace we strive for, lies somewhere beyond the individual, beyond the perception of others, beyond invention and disguise. Even beyond the effort itself. You can join the game, fight the wars, play, but to find real peace, you must lower your armor. Your need for acceptance can make you invisible in this world. Don't let anything stand in the way of the light that penetrates this form. Take a risk and let the world see you at your best."
Oprah Winfrey. Harvard commencement address, 2013
The host of The Oprah Winfrey Show, the most popular talk show in the world, has been named one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people of the year nine times.
“The most important lesson I have learned over the past 25 years of interacting with different people every day on my talk show is that there is a common denominator in our human experience. Most of us, I tell you, don't want to be separated from everyone else. What we want, this common denominator that I found in every interview, is the desire to be accepted by society. We want to be understood. I've done over 35,000 interviews in my career, and as soon as the camera turns off, the guest on the show always turns to me and in his own way asks the following question: “Did everything go well?” I heard it from President Bush, I heard it from President Obama. . I've heard it from heroes and housewives. I've heard this from criminals and crime victims. I even heard it from Beyoncé and her “Beyonce-ness.” She finished her speech, handed me the microphone and said: “Did everything go well?” Friends, relatives, enemies and strangers in every argument, in every conversation, in every meeting want to know one thing: “Did everything go well?” Did you hear me? Did you see me? Does anything I say mean anything to you? “And even though this is the university where Facebook was born, I hope that you will step outside these walls and try to have one-on-one conversations with people with whom you disagree. It doesn't matter what heights you reach. You're bound to stumble at some point because you're trying to do what we're all trying to do—constantly raise the bar and question the status quo. If you constantly strive higher and higher, then the law of large numbers, not to mention the myth of Icarus, predicts that at some point you will begin to fall down. And when that happens, I want you to know and remember this: failure does not exist. Failure is life's way of trying to convince you to change direction."
Peter Dinklage. Bennington College commencement address, 2012
The Game of Thrones star told graduates of his former college about how his career didn't work out for a very long time and how he had to work outside his specialty to be able to pay for housing. And how he finally returned to his calling after 11 long years.
“When I was 29, I told myself that the next job I would get, no matter how much it paid, would be as an actor. That from now on, for better or for worse, I will work as an actor. Therefore, I resigned from my position in the Professional Examination Service. My friends didn't like it very much because I was so easy to find when I worked there. Work was the only place where I had internet. This was during the early days of the Internet. And now I had no internet, no cell phone, no work. But something good happened. I got a job in a small theater in the play Imperfect Love. As a result, a film was made called “13 Moons” with the same screenwriter. Which led to other roles. Which led to other roles. And since then I have been working as an actor. But I didn't know this would happen. At 29, leaving data processing, I was terrified. My parents didn't have a lot of money. But they tried their best to send me to the best schools. And one of the most important things that they did for me afterwards - and for the graduates, maybe you don't want to hear this - is that after I graduated, they left me without any money. Financially, it was my turn. Parents applaud, graduates do not. But it helped. This made me very hungry. Literally. I couldn't be lazy. Now I’m completely lazy, but then I couldn’t be.”
“There is no more pitiful sight than a severed spirit.”
“Scent of a Woman” (1992), directed by Martin Brest
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, suffering from blindness and depression, decides to spend his last weekend in style before committing suicide, and he gets the company of a naive and inexperienced high school student, Charles Simms. Charlie helps Frank regain his taste for life, but he himself gets into serious trouble by refusing to hand over his troublesome friends to the school administration. Frank comes to a meeting of the school's disciplinary committee and defends his young friend with a rude but very heartfelt speech about the complexity of moral choices, honesty and courage.
“What kind of nonsense is this? What principles do you promote? “Boys, snitch on your friends and save your skins, and if not, we will roast you over a slow fire”? You are building a ship for rats, and if you think you are preparing these klutzes for adulthood, then you are sorely mistaken, because you are killing the spirit that your school is trying to instill... I didn't fall from the moon, you know. There was a time when I was sighted. I saw the same young men - with torn off limbs. But still there is no more pitiful sight... than a severed spirit. It cannot be replaced with a prosthesis.”
Joanne Rowling. Harvard commencement address, 2008
The creator of Harry Potter graduated from Harvard 21 years before giving this speech. She studied at the Classical Literature department and dreamed of writing novels, but soon after receiving her diploma she found herself alone, without a job and with a small child. Nevertheless, JK Rowling found the strength to fulfill her old dream and achieve success.
“One of the many truths that I learned while studying classical literature was written by the Greek author Plutarch and sounded like this: “By developing the inner world, we change the outer world.” An amazing statement that is still confirmed a thousand times every day. It also expresses our inescapable connection with the outside world, the fact that we touch other people's lives simply by existing. I have only one wish left for you. A wish that I have, 21 years later, has already come true. The friends with whom I sat on the graduation bench became my faithful companions in life. They are my children's godparents, people I can turn to in times of trouble, people who were nice enough to spare me prosecution when I gave their names to the Death Eaters. At our graduation, we were bound by an incredible love brought on by our experiences together, by time that would never return, and, of course, by the knowledge that some of the photographs we kept would be good evidence should either of us decide to become Prime Minister. Therefore, today I wish you to find the same friends. Well, tomorrow, even if you don’t remember a single word of mine, I hope you won’t forget the words of Seneca, another ancient Roman thinker, which I chose while running away from career ladders in search of ancient truths: “Life is like history: what matters is not how long it is, and how good it is."
CONTENT
- Sujourner Truth: “Am I not a woman?”
- Winston Churchill, Fulton speech
- Joseph Goebbels, Speech on Total War
- Martin Luther King: "I have a dream"
- Mach
- Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
- Olzhas Suleimenov, "Nevada - Semey"
Words inspire people to change the world and fight for human rights, and sometimes start political conflicts on a global scale. We have collected seven speeches and performances that in one way or another influenced the course of history.
Meryl Streep. Barnard College Commencement Address, 2010
“Everything I know about success, fame, celebrities is a topic for a separate speech. How it separates you from your friends, from reality, from proportionality. Your own sweet anonymity is a treasure you don't even know you have until it's gone. How does this complicate your family's life and does being famous in the whole stream of time make any difference in the end. I know that's why I was invited here. How famous I am, how many awards I have won, and so far I am immensely proud of the work, which, believe me, I did not do alone. I can assure you that awards have very little impact on my personal happiness, my own sense of well-being and purpose in this world. This comes from a sensory exploration of the world and empathy for one's work. It comes from staying alert, alive, and involved in the lives of the people I love and the people in the wider world who need my help. It doesn’t matter what you see or hear when I speak, when I hold a figurine on your TV, but it works. Being a celebrity taught me to hide, but being an actress opened my soul. Being here today has made me look around inside for something useful that I can share with you, and I am very grateful that you gave me a chance. You know you don't have to be famous. You just need to make your mother and father proud of you and you have already done that. Bravo! Congratulations!"
Which speech did you find most inspiring? Write in the comments.
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"Freedom will never die"
The Great Dictator (1940), directed by Charlie Chaplin
Still from the film “The Great Dictator” (1940)
Charlie Chaplin's satirical comedy, in which a simple Jewish barber turns out to be the doppelganger of the dictator Hynkel (the political allusion is quite clear), is full of hilarious jokes and incredible coincidences, but it ends with one of the most touching and serious humanistic messages in the history of cinema. The barber who replaced the dictator with a fiery speech calls on all soldiers to lay down their arms and stop being slaves to a cruel system.
“We think too much and feel too little. More than mechanisms, we need humanity. More than intelligence, we need kindness and delicacy. Without these qualities, life will be cruel and everything will be lost. Airplanes and radio brought us closer to each other. The very nature of these inventions appeals to the goodness in man, appeals to universal brotherhood, to the unity of us all. Even now, my voice reaches millions around the world, millions of desperate men, women and little children - victims of a system that forces people to torture and imprison innocent people. To those who hear me, I say: “Don’t despair!” The suffering that now overwhelms us stems from greed. The hatred of the people will pass, and the dictators will die, but the power that was taken from the people will return to the people. And while people die, freedom will never die."
