Harvard university: the story behind the three lies of Harvard bronze statue

20 1 1 In August, when I first came to study at Harvard Kennedy College, a student volunteer who just graduated from Harvard showed me around the Harvard campus during a week-long orientation visit.

When the newly graduated black alumni introduced the famous bronze statue of Harvard, they introduced three lies about the bronze statue of Harvard, which sounded quite interesting. (The Three Lies of the Harvard Statue)

When introducing the history of Harvard University, the alumnus who just graduated from Harvard University told these three lies humorously.

First of all, the first lie is about the statue itself, which is not modeled after Harvard itself. When the school board decided to cast a statue of Harvard in recognition of its contribution to the development of Harvard University, Harvard himself died. I can't find any photos of Harvard in the library and database of Harvard University, so I can only find a Harvard student who is said to be very similar to Harvard himself as a model according to records and legends.

The second lie involves that Harvard itself is not the founder of the school, but a contributor who has played an extremely important role in the development of Harvard University. Because it is recorded that Harvard University was founded by Puritans (a branch of the Anglican Church) in 1636, before Harvard himself came to Boston. Harvard came to Cambridge, Boston on 1637 and was a member of the founding Committee of Cambridge University, the predecessor of Harvard University. When he died, his will donated half of his library and property to the then Cambridge University. His generous donation plays a very important role in the development of Harvard University. In memory of this important donor, the school board unanimously agreed to rename Cambridge University Harvard University. This is why many people mistakenly think that Harvard is the founder of Harvard University.

The third lie involves that the school was founded in 1636, not in 1638. Perhaps Harvard himself died in 1638 and donated money. The bronze statue maker wanted to explain the time of Harvard's own donation, perhaps the time of Harvard's death, but it was vague in any case, which opened the source for future generations to guess wrong.

Some clues can also be seen from the recruitment of foreign students by Harvard University. On the one hand, Harvard University attaches great importance to academic performance and wants to recruit the best students into the school. This year, the ratio of enrollment to the number of applicants hit a record low, less than 5%. (Harvard enrolled 2,000 undergraduates this month, with more than 50,000 applicants) It is very difficult to enter Harvard for undergraduate study, which requires not only excellent academic performance, but also social activities and other qualities. It is precisely because of such strict requirements that Harvard University has always stood at the top of the world's academics and prospered for hundreds of years. The 38th1anniversary celebration and graduation ceremony of Harvard University just passed, and a series of celebration activities of the school made students, alumni and the world relive the historical glory of Harvard.

On the other hand, Harvard is the richest private school in America. There is another group among Harvard students, that is, the children of royal families and senior officials all over the world. Maybe Harvard has its own reasons. The children of politicians in various countries are a kind of resource, which can influence their attitude towards the United States and spread American culture in the future. But I'm afraid there is another reason why we can't put it on the table, that is, these people are excellent alumni resources and may be the financing and donation targets of Harvard in the future. It is said that the financing target of Harvard University for the 375th anniversary of 20 1 1 is $5 billion. Of course, big entrepreneurs and dignitaries alumni are important targets. As a result, as a private university, Harvard University has a management fund of over $35 billion, which is extremely rich.

Like all universities, Harvard students are also afraid of exams. So in order to get good grades in exams, or to pass exams, Harvard, the best student in the world, is superstitious. There is a legend that touching the left foot of Harvard bronze statue on the eve of the exam can bring you good luck. Because of this legend, the left foot of the bronze statue of Harvard is much brighter than the right foot of the bronze statue.

This year, a colleague, because her daughter new york graduated from Pennsylvania, went to the United States to attend her child's graduation ceremony. After graduation, I visited a famous school in Boston, Massachusetts. Of course, I went to Harvard University. I also came to the bronze statue and took photos as a souvenir.

When the first photo was sent to me, I left a message on WeChat: Why not touch the left foot of Harvard bronze statue more, which will bring good luck? After seeing my WeChat, they returned to the bronze statue and touched Harvard's golden left foot, looking forward to a better life tomorrow.

Harvard University is the first university in American history. Now it has 1654.38+0.2 million copies of American and world-class university libraries and a library system composed of more than 70 libraries, alumni donations, first-class famous professors and first-class students.

1620, before the Puritans who were expelled from England landed in Plymouth, Boston by may flower, the French, the Spanish and the Dutch colonized America successively.

The Spanish, in particular, established the first European city in Central America as early as 1493, with colonies all over Central and South America and southern North America. The French occupied Quebec, Canada, and established the Acadian colony on 1640. The Dutch first occupied new york and named it Amsterdam in the United States. Later, they sold it to the British colonists at that time, that is, the later Americans, for 2400 gold coins. Judging from the colonial history of France, Spain and the Netherlands, apart from the records of colonial plunder, they have made little contribution to the history of development.

Although the British landed in America at the latest, it was 16 years after the first boat of refugees landed, and 1620 years later 1636 years after the first immigrants landed. At that time, Cambridge University was founded, which was later Harvard University.