I was asked to give a speech at the National Honor Society induction ceremony at NRHEG this year. As I was thinking about the honor of being asked, I hit upon the idea that I would use for the central theme of my speech: the idea of honor and what it means. Since I’m smack dab in the middle of National Novel Writing Month with some of my students, I’m swamped by a ton of writing as I try to attain my 30,000-word goal. So I figured I might kill two birds with one stone and use the speech I wrote as my column for this week. Here it is:
Words are fascinating. Every word we speak has a story behind it.
As we welcome these deserving new members into the National Honor Society, let’s spend a little time talking about one of those words. Sure, others today are talking about the four qualifying words: scholarship, leadership, service, and character. Those are important and are considered carefully in order to join this prestigious group. But I’m talking about a different word: honor.
Honor is one of those fun words in our English language that can serve as both a noun and a verb. As a noun, it can mean two things. One is high respect or great esteem, such as, “She was treated with great honor after saving the young child from the fire.” It can also mean adherence to what is right, such as, “It was a matter of honor to tell his boss why he was late.” As a verb, honor can also mean two things. The first is related to the previous noun version, to regard with great respect, such as, “The children should honor their parents and thank them every chance they get.” The other action version of honor is to fulfill an obligation or agreement, such as, “The store would always honor the warranty and stand by their service.”
Each of those four definitions relates to the students who sit before you today. There is great honor in being a member of the National Honor Society. In regards to their character, they are eligible because they adhere to what is right. The verb definitions also match. That great character of these students shows honor to those who deserve it. And through their leadership and service, they fulfill the last definition by fulfilling the duties of different groups to which they belong.
What’s even more interesting is what you discover when you trace the etymology, or history, of the word honor. It started in Latin as honos and was a basic root of that language. To the people of bygone times, the idea of honor was paramount. If you were not honorable, you were not a welcome part of society and civilization.
The word moved into Old French with onor. From there, the group of people north of France, stationed on a large island, grabbed it and moved it into Middle English as honor. Those of us who speak English should recognize how little honor our ancestors had in basically pillaging every other language on the planet to form our own!
The coincidence in all this is the very motto of the National Honor Society: noblesse oblige, which is French for “nobility obligates.” It seems likely that in the passing of time, as languages evolved, the French took part of that meaning of their word onor to form the basis of this phrase. The French believed that whoever claims to be noble must behave nobly. In a figurative sense, one must act in a fashion that conforms to one’s position and with the reputation that one has earned.
As members of the National Honor Society, you have all now taken on this motto. You are a type of nobility and must honor the terms of this membership in order to be deserving of this honor. You have earned a positive reputation in order to be considered for this group, and now you must live up to that.
Scholarship, leadership, service, and character are all key words for the National Honor Society. However, when one looks at the most important element of this group, it is the honor that goes with it. Congratulations to all of you for attaining this. Now you must continue to live up to those standards of honor. That means no tomfoolery or skulduggery and certainly no defenestration! Good luck!
The students that were selected this year will, I’m sure, appear in this paper next week, and it is a fine group of young people who will represent NRHEG and the NHS well. Congratulations to all of them on this great honor!
Word of the Week: This week’s word is satyagraha, which means the policy of passive, nonviolent resistance as a protest against injustice, as in, “The lady was proud to be given the honor of leading the satyagraha as concerned citizens marched against the mistreatment of immigrant children.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!