The Transformation of Signet

In a gesture of indignation and rebellion, mingled with more than just a touch of superiority, the Signet Society was founded. This spirit was engendered by the friction between the intellectual and social element in Harvard society. In 1870, the social element unquestionably dominated the scene. The opening words of the Society's minutes set the dominating tone for the intellectuals:

"On Tuesday evening, November 1, 1870, a meeting was held at 10 Grays Hall preliminary to the organization of a senior society, which was to afford to a select number a pleasant means of intercourse with each other, not to be expected from the illiberal policy of the only society of reputation existing."

The "illiberal" society referred to was the Hasty Pudding-Institute of 1770 which was that year celebrating its hundredth anniversary. Pudding and its rival, the Pi Eta Club, used annually to call a truce just long enough to supervise jointly the election of Class Day officers, Harvard's only official Big Men on Campus. Fifteen members of the class of 1871 had tried unsuccessfully in their Sophomore year to form a club in opposition to the ones which were apparently rejecting them. The Class Day elections their Senior year provided incentive for them to attempt once more to form a society, and Signet was the result.

There was already existing a group called the O.K. Club, a small literary society to which several members of Signet already belonged. The O.K. Club, however, was not large enough or of wide enough scope to be an effective force in the community. Although the founders of Signet criticized the kind of influence and unfair prestige enjoyed by the clubs, they were not without aspirations of influence themselves. They hoped that they could be a beneficial force by "disciplining" the finer minds at Harvard and by a greater concern with the total education of its members.

In a college whose enrollment was rapidly increasing, and where the introduction of the elective system had removed many of the common ties, the founders of Signet were condemning not the idea of clubs, but rather the effects of club life on a young man. Their philosophy was that academic learning, if it is to be beneficial and not injurious, must be accompanied by moral education, and that this cannot come from the faculty, but must come from one's fellow students. They thought that the "promiscuity" of the clubs would seriously impair the value of this aspect of a Harvard education, and one of the earliest organic rules stated that "acts of conviviality" would be considered out of order.

These considerations, while they are important to Signet as a perpetuating organization, seemed to be afterthoughts in the first days of formation, and through the high seriousness of purpose penetrates the underlying bitterness of boys who have been hurt by being kept out. Thus, in explaining the aims of the Society to new members at the first initiation, the president referred to Porcellian as "well suited to receive diminutive swine, but not that portion of the human race who think they possess a soul"; Pi Eta lacked "even a standard of admission, much less one of conduct." But the harshest words of censure were reserved for the arch-enemy:

"It certainly cannot be charged against the Pudding that it has no standard of admission or that it is without influence in the college, but it may be fairly asserted that the standard is false and the influence deplorable. The Pudding seeks for "gentlemen", not in the sense of men of honor, nor in that of men of polished manners, but in that of men of large means and little brains, possessed with the singular delusion that they occupy a social position higher than the rest of mankind... a few men of ability are admitted on condition of repaying by uniform obsequiousness, the favor of associating not indeed on terms of equality, but by tolerance with persons so immeasurably their superiors."

Signet today resembles the original society only slightly. From a small group of seniors, it has grown into a sizeable organization based about a group of about sixty undergraduates. There is now a large initiation fee of $100--waived if a student is elected who cannot afford to pay it. These dues, however, tend to exclude potential members who cannot afford the luxury of such a Society. The famous "Pudding clause", barring Pudding members from the Society, was dropped sixteen years after the Signet was formed.

The Society has moved from its original meeting place in Grays through a succession of upstairs rooms, to its present permanent location in the building on the corner of Dunster and Mt. Auburn streets. The purchase of the building in 1902 was made possible largely through the gift of James H. Hyde '98, supplemented by donations made through Signet's alumni association. The weekly meetings Friday evening have grown into daily luncheons and Sunday suppers. Guests may be brought at any time, including undergraduates from Harvard. In concession to the spirit of the Old Signet, ladies are permitted only Sunday evenings and Friday at tea; nevertheless, disturbing signs of conviviality are creeping in, and the Society is even beginning to sponsor dances.

The significant change in Signet lies deeper than in these alterations. In the original statement of the Society's aims, literary culture and social intercourse were among the chief purposes. These two objects are not incompatible, but neither are they particularly conducive to one another, and at times the social intercourse threatens to submerge the literary culture. It is of course difficult to have a Platonic dialogue at lunch, but the general flow of conversation tends to center about daily affairs, topical anecdotes, and private and public gossip. There are virtually no more meetings to read papers or hold serious discussions. The concern for academic discipline, and especially for moral education, has almost disappeared. The assumption that a group of interesting people will spontaneously produce brilliant conversation when brought together does not often hold true after a morning of classes when most members prefer to relax rather than to emanate or to absorb culture. Signet is used more as a pleasant eating club than as an intellectual society by many people who go there. Today, a large percentage of its membership belongs to final clubs, and a number of the rest appears to desire entrance; as a result, there is a strong tendency to mold Signet club.

The initiations have also descended in quality. Originally the new members were given a speech by the president, welcomed into the Society, and then asked to read "parts," or papers on various topics. Later on, the ceremony was elaborated into a parody of the Oral Exams. Nowadays, the initiations are preceded by a cocktail hour, and a semi-sober group shouts nonsense while the novitiate attempts to read his part. It is usually not even witty, and it is certainly never an academic discipline. There has recently been a move to reform these affairs, and the next initiation is expected to return to the ideal of the days of Kittredge.

The preamble to Signet's constitution states one further purpose for the Society, that election to membership be a recognition of merit. One of the founders expressed his hope that people would be elected on the basis of real ability rather than because of "good fellowship," and that Signet would not adopt the false standard of admission originally criticized in other clubs.

Real ability still often must take second place to good fellowship. The difficulty lies with the fact that there is no common agreement concerning in what merit consists. Academic standing is not always consulted, and often the glib conversationalist will be elected over the serious scholar. Many members are more concerned with keeping certain people out than with who gets in. The election meetings are charged with a snobbery and viciousness that many Final Clubs would be hard pressed to emulate.

Nevertheless, in spite of its functional defects, Signet serves a unique and invaluable purpose in being the only intellectual social society at Harvard. The College has a reputation based upon its outstanding academic record, yet there is almost no official recognition of individual academic achievements. The University supports a club for varsity athletes, and the other clubs