D.H. Lawrence described "The Oxford Voice," as "so seductively self-effacingly depracatingly superior - We wouldn't insist on it for a moment, but we are, we are - You admit we are - SUPERIOR."
There is no substitute for hearing that statement expressed by a true Oxonian, with proper accent and inflection, especially on the word, "superior." The first time it is read, it sounds egotistical. The second time, when a person knows firsthand about Oxford's legendary personality, it seems factual.There is simply nothing in the academic world to compare with Oxford.
I visited it for the first time two years ago for a convention and found its venerable character overwhelming. Living in the dorms at Wadham College for six days was an unforgettable experience. Of the city's population of 115,000, just over 13,000 are students, but the intellectual essence IS Oxford. The university is not located in one convenient place, but is spread around the city in a tangle of 35 colleges and five private halls. Six colleges, established since World War II, are for graduate students only.
The interesting thing about Oxford is that the university provides the central libraries, laboratories and lecture rooms, prescribes the curricula, conducts the examinations and awards the degrees.
The colleges, however, provide the energy and personality of the educational experience by selecting the students and providing them with tutors (professors who teach intimately, one-on-one). In fact, Oxford devotes more of the time of established scholars to undergraduate teaching than any other university in the world.
Each college has its own buildings, libraries, dorms, traditions and specialties. In short, each has its own persona.
Students are required to meet with their tutors once or twice weekly, to present an essay and discuss the week's work. After three years of study, they prepare for their "finals" or "degree examinations," held in June at the Examination Schools, a series of Victorian rooms on High Street. According to tradition, the students dress formally, wearing black gowns, white ties, shirts and mortarboards.
The results are announced on bulletin boards categorizing candidates in first, second or third class. Almost never does a person who has not qualified for first class achieve an academic career. It is a tough standard, but there needs to be at least one like it.
It seems almost unbelievable. But Oxford, the oldest university in the English-speaking world, has suffered from government cutbacks and escalating operating costs. It is now seeking financial contributions from individuals, foundations and corporations in the United States and other countries. For the first time in its 800 year history, Oxford has launched an international fund-raising campaign, with a goal of $400 million, designed to lay the foundation for Oxford's next 100 years.
The goal, according to Sir Patrick Neill, vice chancellor, is to build an endowment for professorships and fellowships, scholarships for overseas students, research projects and laboratories, and to conserve the priceless heritage of the museums and libraries.
Oxford's contributions to world culture and science are legion. Oxonians have given the world penicillin, "Alice in Wonderland," "The Oxford English Dictionary," Halley's Comet, "The Hobbit," the Methodist religion, the 4-minute mile and the Age of Reason.
Sir Walter Raleigh, John Locke, John Donne, Roger Bacon, Thomas Hobbes, Samuel Johnson, John Wesley, Adam Smith and Oscar Wilde all studied at Oxford. Graduates include 24 British prime ministers, 32 U.S. senators, two Canadian prime ministers, six Asian prime ministers, three African leaders and four Latin American presidents.
140,000 graduates are alive today, 9,000 of whom are Americans. Eight percent of the 1,400 instructors are Americans. Other Oxonians include five U.S. senators, six congressmen, two governors and a Supreme Court justice. The list is staggering.
While at Wadham, I ate in the great dining hall with huge wooden tables, surrounded by ornate decorations and pictures of some of the illustrious graduates and tutors. It was like a religious experience. Even the prevailing attitude toward the main quad as shrine where the grass is protected from human footsteps seemed endearing.
Oxford is an academic treasure. The Examination Schools represent a veritable model of intellectual decorum. The students I saw there taking their examinations, dressed in black and white, exuded a distinctivesense of pride.
I hope Oxford solves its financial crisis. We need its incomparable traditions and institutions - for another 800 years.