After discussing John Brown’s life and the thoughts of Martha Thauraud, it has become increasingly clear that we need to be more introspective and perceptive. Law students learn to ignore the fact that their quality of life has plummeted and they are spending countless hours and huge sums of money on an intangible and unknown goal. Afraid to break the mold for fear of falling below the curve, we mindlessly follow.

We have the option of taking the route of Mr. Wiley—numbing our minds with substances to keep billable hours up and emotions down. Work is good. Money is good. Comfort and acceptance are paramount. However, we have the other option of learning what we really want to do by developing a purpose and redirecting our enthusiasm toward it for a life of genuine, long-term fulfillment.

John Brown’s purpose, to which he devoted every fiber of his being, was freeing slaves. He had truly made himself the instrument of this purpose, and this trait, to me, is tremendously admirable. It got me to wondering how I could find my own purpose. A purpose to which I could devote myself to whole-heartedly in an attempt to create a career that never had a moment of regret.

Brown stood in stark opposition to the people in power and privilege of his era. Those people had managed to turn a blind eye to the atrocities of slavery and understood it as something normal and acceptable. For this reason, these people weren’t the instrument of a purpose like Brown was. They were more complacent and happy in their comparatively sheltered existences.

As a person within a group that is undoubtedly extremely fortunate and privileged, I’m scared that I have been doing the same. Have I learned to turn away from the injustice that is right in front of me? Will I never find a similar purpose because I’ve neglected to witness and accept the fact that there is suffering everywhere?

The first step in fixing this is to listen to Thauraud and stop being so “dim.” According to her, lawyers spend their time thinking about little more than what puts money in their pockets, and I feel like we are being pushed onto the same track. If we learn to be more perceptive of the nature of our society and introspective regarding what we truly want, I think that it’s possible to find the catalyst that creates a Brown-like purpose and drives a lifetime of enthusiastic work.

But how do we start to brighten up the “dimness?” It may take some time away from schoolbooks and the law school campus, walking through the city and absorbing the sights and sounds. It may take some meditating upon what issues in the world you truly find bothersome, but you’ve simply neglected to address. I really don’t think that it requires that we all become entrepreneurs. Could the move to a more fulfilling career be the organic result of opening our eyes?

-- AustenBrandford - 29 Mar 2012