2008 Woodie Awards
Why I hate the word "tolerance"
Michael Bayer
Issue date: 9/25/02 Section: Commentary
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tol·er·ance : noun
1 : capacity to endure pain or hardship : ENDURANCE, FORTITUDE, STAMINA
2 a : sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one's own b : the act of allowing something : TOLERATION
3 : the allowable deviation from a standard; especially : the range of variation permitted in maintaining a specified dimension in machining a piece
(Source: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.)
Alright, so I do not really hate the word tolerance; after all, it is merely an arbitrary assembly of letters assigned meaning by human usage. And I do not even really hate its assigned definition. But I do dislike the way it is commonly used, or, I believe, misused. When I hear the word tolerance, two very lucid, but very different, usages come to mind. The first is the seemingly ubiquitous discussion around campus this time of year regarding the ability of Hoyas to consume alcohol. You know what I am talking about: “I’ve been away all summer and I didn’t drink at all, so my tolerance is pretty low right now.”
Okay, so inane conversations of margaritas and kegs aside, there is another use of the word that comes to mind, and coincidentally, it also seems to abound on campus this time of year. Well at any time of year, come to think of it. And that usage is in discussions of tolerance on campus. Religious tolerance. Tolerance of ideas that differ from our own. Tolerance of people with different sexual orientation. Tolerance of people with different levels of melanin in their epidermis. An air of tolerance that abounds on Georgetown’s diverse and educated campus.
So think about all of the diversity training seminars and pluralism classes and everything that you have gone to regarding tolerance here. Now reread the definition of tolerance above. Does anything strike you? Okay, so now that I have spent the last few paragraphs rambling on in a sort of prologue, I will divulge why I possess the aforementioned distaste. For me, Georgetown is the most amazing place because it brings together so many different persons from so many different backgrounds and puts them all together in one environment. In my opinion, Georgetown truly is a catholic Catholic school, an institution whose identity is not only defined by the Church, but by its universality and its commitment to the inclusion and welcoming of all persons.
1 : capacity to endure pain or hardship : ENDURANCE, FORTITUDE, STAMINA
2 a : sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one's own b : the act of allowing something : TOLERATION
3 : the allowable deviation from a standard; especially : the range of variation permitted in maintaining a specified dimension in machining a piece
(Source: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.)
Alright, so I do not really hate the word tolerance; after all, it is merely an arbitrary assembly of letters assigned meaning by human usage. And I do not even really hate its assigned definition. But I do dislike the way it is commonly used, or, I believe, misused. When I hear the word tolerance, two very lucid, but very different, usages come to mind. The first is the seemingly ubiquitous discussion around campus this time of year regarding the ability of Hoyas to consume alcohol. You know what I am talking about: “I’ve been away all summer and I didn’t drink at all, so my tolerance is pretty low right now.”
Okay, so inane conversations of margaritas and kegs aside, there is another use of the word that comes to mind, and coincidentally, it also seems to abound on campus this time of year. Well at any time of year, come to think of it. And that usage is in discussions of tolerance on campus. Religious tolerance. Tolerance of ideas that differ from our own. Tolerance of people with different sexual orientation. Tolerance of people with different levels of melanin in their epidermis. An air of tolerance that abounds on Georgetown’s diverse and educated campus.
So think about all of the diversity training seminars and pluralism classes and everything that you have gone to regarding tolerance here. Now reread the definition of tolerance above. Does anything strike you? Okay, so now that I have spent the last few paragraphs rambling on in a sort of prologue, I will divulge why I possess the aforementioned distaste. For me, Georgetown is the most amazing place because it brings together so many different persons from so many different backgrounds and puts them all together in one environment. In my opinion, Georgetown truly is a catholic Catholic school, an institution whose identity is not only defined by the Church, but by its universality and its commitment to the inclusion and welcoming of all persons.