Sweaty students and middle-aged alumni flail their arms as they jump up and down on a slippery floor cluttered by empty cups and beer cans. A half-dozen naked fraternity members precariously conceal their genitals by staying behind a counter. Female students stand unconcerned a few feet away. Bodies move with manic energy but people's eyes contain no human warmth.
As I took in this scene from a fraternity basement during Homecoming weekend, I could not help but shake my head at the immaturity of some Dartmouth students. Although most Dartmouth students vigorously apply themselves to academic pursuits, they often pay much less heed to their intellectuality or personal maturity. Ultimately, too many of us allow base desires to divert our energies away from endeavors with deeper spiritual meaning.
Many students at Dartmouth do not seem very interested in having deep, meaningful conversations. A lot of students would probably be hard-pressed to recall an occasion when they spent more than 10 minutes discussing a single intellectual topic. Indeed, I can remember hearing only one prolonged, cerebral conversation in my residential building last year. Although Bored at Baker the notorious anonymous message board surely tends to attract certain kinds of people, it is telling that posts are infinitely more likely to contain lewd statements than any yearning for intellectual understanding.
It is no secret that many college students devote a great deal of time and energy to the pursuit of carnal gratification. One problem with all this lustful energy is that it causes people to engage in superficial behavior by obsessing over their physical appearances or adopting social facades in order to impress others. By focusing on externalities and physical desires, people lose touch with their inner spiritual beings. It is no wonder that many religions consider lust and other worldly cravings to be diversions from the pursuit of spiritual truth.
A lot of Dartmouth students go too far in categorically rejecting traditional moral views as nonsensical, superstitious props for intolerant social conservatives. In point of fact, those who abuse substances or let their carnal desires run wild are often rather close-minded to the possibility of their behavior being unnatural or unhealthful. Indeed, I am reminded of the unconcerned manner in which a student recently told me that she uses hallucinogenic drugs and has to sleep mostly during the day because of her frivolous nighttime activities. Many students could use the sort of strong moral compass that religion can provide.
When I read Saint Augustine's autobiographical "Confessions" for a history class last year, it was fascinating to learn how someone from the fourth century experienced the same internal conflicts that preoccupy people today. Like so many present-day college students, Augustine was consumed by a "hell of lust" and "ran wild in the jungle of erotic adventures." After leading a painful life of worldly craving, Augustine converted to Christianity and realized that the path to fulfillment lay in the pursuit of spiritual truth. I deeply sympathize with Augustine and can only hope that young people today will also see the error in their excessively lustful ways.
Whether or not we are religious, we can all learn from Augustine's example and admire his deep desire to become a better human being. We should also strive to improve ourselves by living intellectual, "examined" lives whereby we are constantly trying to learn from our life experiences. Unfortunately, the ability of Dartmouth students to attain objective measures of "success" does not necessarily translate to an understanding of how to achieve personal development. For many students, their sense of self-worth primarily depends on their ability to access worldly gratification or material wealth. Too few of us look inward and judge ourselves on the contents of our character.
Although there is nothing wrong with having fun for fun's sake, we should be focused on becoming better people during our time at Dartmouth. Most of us could do with being a little less concerned about superficial amusements and a little more attentive to the pursuit of rich life experiences. The next time you engage in the sort of mindless bantering that predominates much of campus discourse, stop yourself and consider sharing something more meaningful.
