Essay on The Virtues of Ambition

Ambition

Ambition is one of those Rorschach words: define it and you instantly reveal a great deal about yourself. Even that most neutral of works, Webster's, in its Seventh New Collegiate Edition, gives itself away, defining ambition first and foremost as "an ardent desire for rank, fame, or power." Ardent immediately assumes a heat incommensurate with good sense and stability, and rank, fame, and power have come under fairly heavy attack for at least a century. One can, after all, be ambitious for the public good, for the alleviation of suffering, for the enlightenment of mankind, though there are some who say that these are precisely the ambitious people most to be distrusted.

Table of Contents

• Ambition Definition
• Ambition Merits
• Ambition Demerits
• Conclusion
• Questions for Discussion
• Exploring Ideas
• Samuel Ichiye. I. Hayakawa Biography

Ambition Definition

Surely ambition is behind dreams of glory, of wealth, of love, of distinction, of accomplishment, of pleasure, of goodness. What life does with our dreams and expectations cannot, of course, be predicted. Some dreams, begun in selflessness, end in rancor; other dreams, begun in selfishness, end in large-heartedness. The unpredictability of the outcome of dreams is no reason to cease dreaming.

Ambition Merits

What is the worst that can be said – that has been said – about ambition? Here is a (surely) partial list: To begin with, it, ambition, is often antisocial, and indeed is now out-moded, belonging to an age when individualism was more valued and useful than it is today.

Ambition Demerits

If ambition is to be well-regarded, the rewards of ambition – wealth, distinction, control over one's destiny – must be deemed worthy of the sacrifices made on ambition’s behalf. If the tradition of ambition is to have vitality, it must be widely shared; and it especially must be esteemed by people who are themselves admired, the educated not least among them.

Conclusion

Many people are naturally distrustful of ambition, feeling that it represents something intractable in human nature. Thus John Dean entitled his book about his involvement in the in the Watergate affair during the Nixon administration Blind Ambition, as if ambition were to blame for his ignoble actions, and not the constellation of qualities that make up his rather shabby character. Ambition, it must once again be underscored, is morally a two-sided street. Place next to John Dean Andrew Carnegie, who, among other philanthropic acts, bought the library of Lord Acton, at a time when Acton was in financial distress, and assigned its custodianship to Acton, who never was told who his benefactor was. Need much more be said on the subject than that, important though ambition is, there are some things that one must not sacrifice to it?

Questions for Discussion

1. According to the author, what are some of the negative aspects of ambition?
2. What can cause ambition to be well-regarded?
3. What has caused ambition to be less admired in the United States in recent years?

Exploring Ideas

1. The concluding statement of the essay observes that "forming our own destiny is what ambition is about." Do you agree or disagree? Give your reasons.
2. Do you think that people are hypocritical about ambition? If so, in what ways?
3. Do you agree with the author that ambition holds society together?

Samuel Ichiye. I. Hayakawa Biography

Born in Vancouver, Canada, in 1906, Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa has been president of San Francisco State College and a United States Senator. As a professor of English, he has been most influential as a scholar and teacher of general semantics. Author of several books, Prof. Hayakawa’s Language in Thought and Action (1941) has been widely used in writing and philosophy courses. He has also written many articles on a wide range of social and personal issues. “Our Son Mark” is one of those articles, written originally for McCall’s magazine.