The Fringe Benefits of Failure and

The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the

Importance of Imagination
the Importance of Imagination
J. K. Rowling
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1. Answer the following questions in a sentence or two. 1. Answer the following questions in a
sentence or two.

1.1 Why did Rowling convince herself that she is at the world's largest Gryffindor reunion?

The thought of delivering the commencement address at Harvard University had given Rowling weeks of fear and
nausea. But when she arrived at the venue she could see red banners fluttering in the air and she tried to make herself
comfortable thinking that she was at the world's largest Gryffindor reunion.
commencement speech (n) = speech given to graduating students, generally at a university
nausea (n) = a feeling of sickness with an inclination to vomit
flutter (v) = to move back and forth rapidly (fluttering butterfly / leaves in the wind )
Gryffindor = a person having traits associated with Gryffindor house from the Harry Potter series, including bravery, boldness, or an affinity for
lions or the colours red and gold.

1.2. What does Rowling mean by quixotic or paradoxical choice?

After much deliberation, Rowling decides to talk on the benefits of failure and the importance of imagination
in her commencement address at Harvard University. The decision to talk on these topics at the time of
celebrating academic success seems to be a quixotic or paradoxical choice.
quixotic (adj) = unrealistic and impractical അപ്രായാഗികമായ
paradoxical (adj) = it involves two facts or qualities which seem to contradict each other /
self-contradictory വിരോധാഭാസം
deliberation = long and careful consideration of a subject വിമര്‍ശനബുദ്ധ്യാ ചിന്തിക്കുക

1.3. Why did her parents view her aspiration as an amusing personal quirk?

Rowling's middle-class parents viewed her aspiration to become a writer as an amusing personal quirk. They
knew that it would never help her to pay a mortgage or secure a pension.

aspiration (n) = a hope or ambition of achieving something അഭിലാഷം

amusing (adj) = pleasantly entertaining or diverting ഉല്ലാസം നല്‍കുന്ന
quirk (n) = a peculiar aspect of a person's character or behaviour വിചിത്രസ്വഭാവം
mortgage (n) = a type of loan you can use to buy a home/ housing loan

Peter James Rowling & Anne Volant

1.4. "That is your privilege, and your burden". Which privilege is Rowling referring to?
Towards the end of her commencement speech, Rowling reminds her listeners that the way they vote, live, and
the pressure they bring to bear on their government will definitely have an impact beyond the borders of their
country. She refers to this impact as "your privilege, and your burden."

remind (v) = to make someone remember something ഓര്‍മ്മപ്പെടുത്തുക

impact (n) = effect or influence ശക്തിയായ സ്വാധീനം bear (v) = exert ചെലുത്തുക
privilege (n) = a special right or advantage that only one person or group has വിരേഷാധികാം
burden (n) = responsibility കര്‍ത്തവ്യം
2. Answer the following questions in 100 words.
2.1. Describe how Rowling recalls the commencement ceremony during her college life?

While delivering the commencement lecture at Harvard University, Rowling thinks about the commencement
ceremony she had attended at the time of her graduation. The speaker that day was the distinguished British
philosopher Baroness Mary Warnock. Though only two decades had gone by since then, Rowling found it
extremely difficult to recollect a single word that the Baroness had said in her speech. This was a liberating
discovery for Rowling. She realised that what she would say in her speech too would never make an impact on
her audience. It gave her the freedom to choose the topics that were close to her heart.
distinguished (adj) = very successful, authoritative, and commanding great respect സമുന്നതനായ
decade (n) = a period of 10 years ദശാബ്ദം, പത്തു കാല്ലം
recollect / recall (v) = remember
liberating (adj) = making you feel free and able to behave as you like
2.2. How would Rowling's quixotic or paradoxical choice of subject help the Harvard graduates?
In her commencement speech, Rowling decides to speak on the benefits of failure and the power of imagination.
She knows that the students of Harvard University may not have experienced any failure in their lives. But
Rowling is convinced that there is nothing wrong in talking to them of failure as it has many benefits. For
example, failure strips away what is inessential in life and keeps one focussed. It often leads to self discovery
and reveals the strength of relationships. Rowling strongly feels that Harvard graduates should have plenty of
imagination as it is the fount of all inventions. It is also the power that enables us to put ourselves in the shoes of
others, to empathise with others.

convince (v) = believe that something is true ബോദ്ധ്യപ്പെടുക

strip away (pv) = remove
inessential = not important അത്യാവശ്യമില്ലാത്ത
reveal (v) = shows (what was hidden) വെളിപ്പെടുത്തുക
fount (n) = source സ്രാതസ്സ്
enable (v) = make us able പ്രാപ്തനാക്കുക
empathise (v) = understand and share the feelings of another സഹാനുഭൂതി ഉണ്ടാകുക
2.3. What all are the fringe benefits of failure, according to J. K. Rowling? Elucidate her views on poverty.
According to Rowling, failure is endowed with many benefits. It strips away what is not essential in life and
keeps one focussed. It often leads to self discovery which eventually makes one wiser and stronger. It also
reveals the strength of one's relationship. Rowling's views on poverty is also worth noting. After college and a
hasty marriage she had ended up as a jobless single parent on state
support. Since she had experienced poverty in her youth she knows that it is not an ennobling experience.
Poverty entails fear, stress, and sometimes depression. It also involves a thousand petty humiliations and
hardships.

endow (v) = provide with a quality or ability കൊടുക്കുക

eventually (adv) = in the end / finally ആത്യന്തികമായി
reveal (v) = uncover / exhibit / show
ennobling (adj) = to make noble ഉത്കൃഷ്ടമാക്കുക
hasty (adj) = done in a hurry without careful planning തിടുക്കത്തില്‍ ചെയ്ത
entails (v) = involve (something) as a necessary part or consequence അനിവാര്യമാക്കിത്തീര്‍ക്കുക
stress (n) = feeling of emotional or physical tension മാനസിക പിരിമുറുക്കം
depression (n) = mood disorder that can affect a person's daily life വിഷാദരോഗം
petty (adj) = small / of little importance നിസ്സാരമായ
humiliation (n) = shame നാണക്കേട്
hardship (n) = severe suffering കഷ്ടപ്പാട്
3. Answer the questions in 300 words.

3.1. How is failure beneficial in life?

J. K. Rowling, one of the most celebrated writers of our times, shares her views on the benefits of failure and
the importance of imagination in her commencement speech delivered at Harvard University in 2008. While
preparing her speech, she is aware that the students of the university may not have experienced any failure in
their lives. But Rowling is convinced that there is nothing wrong in talking to them of failure as it has many
benefits.

Rowling's views on failure are shaped by her own experiences. After her graduation, she failed on an epic
scale. As a single parent she found it difficult to survive without a job or money. It was during this period of
darkness and utter failure that she learnt much about life.

According to Rowling, failure strips away what is inessential in life. Though it is a painful process, it helps a
person to become determined and focussed in life. The failure Rowling had experienced in her early twenties
instilled in her the courage she needed to direct all her energy into completing the only work that mattered to
her, that is, finishing her novel. It gave her an inner strength she had never attained by passing examinations.

celebrated (adj) = greatly admired; renowned കീര്‍ത്തികേട്ട

epic (adj) = grand in scale ഐതിഹാസികമായ
instil (v) = gradually but firmly establish (an idea or attitude) in a person's mind പ്രബാധിപ്പിക്കുക
attain (v) = gain or accomplish something with effort ശ്രമംകാണ്ട് കൈവരിക്കുക
It also led to the path of self-discovery which eventually helped her to emerge wiser and stronger. She believes
that this self-discovery instigated by failure is very essential in life as it helps one to understand the strength of
one’s relationships. Rowling could learn that some of her friends were
more valuable than diamonds only because of the mammoth failures she had experienced very early in her life.
Failure also imparts the lesson that life is difficult, complicated, and beyond anyone's total control. The humility
to know this will enable a person to survive the vicissitudes of life.
self-discovery (n) = the process of acquiring insight into one's own character സ്വയം കണ്ടെത്തല്‍
emerge (v) = move out of from something and become visible മറനീക്കി പുറത്തുവരുത്തുക
instigate (v) = to start something or cause something to happen പ്രേരിപ്പിക്കുക
mammoth (adj) = huge
impart (v) = make known പ്രദാനം ചെയ്യുക
humility (n) = the state of being humble വിനയം
vicissitude (n) = a change of circumstances or fortune, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant വിധിവൈപരീത്യം
vicissitudes of life = ups and downs of life

3.2 "Climbing out of poverty by your own efforts, that is indeed something on which to pride yourself, but
poverty itself is romanticised only by fools." Comment.

"The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination" is the famous commencement speech
delivered by J. K. Rowling at Harvard University in 2008. In the speech, she poignantly speaks about the
difficulties that she had to face while seeking admission in a college for graduation. Though she wanted to study
English Literature, her parents were totally against it. They considered her ambition to write novels as an
amazing quirk that would never help her to pay a mortgage or secure a pension. They wanted her to do a
vocational course. But against their wishes, she studied the classics. In fact, they came to know about it only on
her graduation day.

Rowling does not blame her parents for their point of view. She emphatically says that there should be "an expiry
date on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction." She cannot criticize her parents for hoping
that she would never experience poverty in life. Their life had taught them that poverty was not an ennobling
experience and they did not want their daughter to suffer from it in her life as well. Later, Rowling had to go
abroad and find a job. She became a divorcee and a single parent who found it difficult to make her ends meet.
Being penniless she had to live on state support and work at low paying jobs while pursuing her passion for
writing.
poignantly (adj) = deeply affecting / touching ഹൃദയസ്പര്‍ശിയായ
amazing (adj) = causing great surprise or wonder / astonishing ആശ്ചര്യപ്പെടുത്തുന്ന
vocational (adj) = relating to an occupation or employment പ്പൊഴിൽപരമായ
blame (v) = blame കുറ്റപ്പെടുത്തുക
emphatically (adv) = in a forceful way / without doubt / clearly ഊന്നിപ്പറയുക
divorcee (n) = a divorced woman or a woman who is separated from her husband വിവാഹമാചി
criticize (v) = find fault with / to judge or discuss the merits and faults of വിമര്‍ശിക്കുക
Rowling's views on poverty are worth noting. Since she had experienced poverty when she was
young, she knows very well that it entails fear, stress, and sometimes depression. It also involves a
thousand petty hardships and humiliations. According to her, poverty is romanticised only by fools.
Climbing out of poverty by one's own efforts requires courage and determination. Rowling's life and
her achievements testify to that fact.

to make ends meet (pv) = to be able to pay for the things you need in life
penniless (adj) = having no money / poor ദരിദ്രനായ
pursue (v) = try to achieve something over a period of time പിന്തുടരുക
passion (n) = a strong feeling of love or enthusiasm അഭിനിവേശം
determination (n) = the quality that makes you do something even when it is difficult നിശ്ചയദാര്‍ഢ്യം
testify (v) = to affirm as fact or truth / attest സാക്ഷ്യപ്പെടുത്തുക
 Joanne (bottom left) with sister Dianne.

Joanne Rowling as a child

Office of
Amnesty
International,
 Rowling and her second husband, Dr. Neil Murray, currently live in Edinburgh with
their children Jessica (from her first marriage), David, and Mackenzie.
 Rowling took entrance exams at the University of Oxford but was not accepted.
She ended up attending the University of Exeter

London where
Rowling worked
“The Elephant House” is one of the cafés in which Rowling wrote the first Harry
after college
Potter novel.
A young Joanne Rowling with her mother Anne & sister Dianne.