David Benzing

Partial Transcript: Thank you for your willingness to talk with me today, our conversation today will focus on your education, life experience, and sense of meaning in your life.

Segment Synopsis: Professor Benzing gives his permission for this interview to be recorded

Keywords: consent; introduction

Partial Transcript: This is Haley Gee, interviewing Professor Benzing on October 25th, 2019 at the Science Center in Oberlin College. Professor Benzing and I are going to discuss his education, and the ways in which he feels it prepared him for dealing with life outside the classroom.

Segment Synopsis: Haley Gee, the interviewer, contextualizes the interview and starts the interview process

Keywords: Date; Interviewee; Interviewer; Location; Purpose; education

Partial Transcript: Could you tell me about when and where you were born and where you grew up? What the neighborhood was like?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses his early childhood in Winnetka, Illinois, and his later childhood in Mansfield, Ohio.

Keywords: birth; birthplace; early life; growing up

Partial Transcript: Could you tell me a little bit about other places you've lived, over your life? Before coming here to Oberlin?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing recounts high school in Mansfield, undergrad at Miami University, and graduate work at the University if Michigan. He also lists places he has traveled for his studies, mostly in tropical America.

Keywords: Florida; University; graduate work; high school; residence

Partial Transcript: Could you tell us where you live now and how long you've lived there?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing talks about his retirement at Kendall, and where he lived for many years outside of Oberlin. He also discusses his involvement in opening a winery and grape growing.

Keywords: Current residence; Kendall; Oberlin; Occupation; Winery; Work; residence; retirement

Partial Transcript: Could you tell us a little more about your experiences during your college and graduate school years?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing recounts his academic experiences in high school, and his experience at Miami. He says he was not a particularly high performing high school student, but explored his interest in academics at Miami. He considered going into medicine, but decided against it. He was drafted shortly after starting graduate school at Miami.

Keywords: Miami; college; draft; graduate work; plant biology; pre-medicine; role model; student; undergrad

Partial Transcript: "I joined the army, and it was the sixth year active reserve..."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing recounts his time in the army, prior to the beginning of the Vietnam war. He narrowly missed the beginning of the war.

Keywords: Vietnam war; army; wartime

Partial Transcript: "I had a good time at Miami, it was a socially good experience for me, but was academically, and a life-developing experience that was even more important..."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses his graduate experience at Michigan. After he graduated, he came to teach at Oberlin.

Keywords: Miami; Michigan; Oberlin; fortune; graduate work; plant biology; post-doctoral

Partial Transcript: With your education, is there anything in particular you think helped to nurture your interests?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing narrates a moment with his grandfather that may have sparked his interest in plant biology.

Keywords: early life; family; interests; mentors; plant biology; seminal moment

Partial Transcript: "I went to Miami, and [my interest in plant biology] was reborn, where it was more acceptable, and then it turned out to be a vehicle for my career."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing talks about what he has experienced through plant biology, and how fortunate he feels.

Keywords: Miami; academics; botany; college; undergrad

Partial Transcript: Could you elaborate on how your interest and involvement in your career has been a source of satisfaction in your life?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing talks about botany at Miami, specifically about a museum job he worked where he was able to care for plants. He also talks about a parallel but different experience of involvement in a fraternity.

Keywords: Miami; botany; college; fraternity; friends; satisfaction; undergrad

Partial Transcript: "The good fortune of having a special interest... was very fulfilling to me."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing talks about his special interest in botany, and how he feels his passion has impacted his life and identity.

Keywords: Fulfillment; Kendall; academic interest; botany; community; education; evolution; identity; individuality; occupation; plant biology; recognition

Partial Transcript: "If you've been a productive academic, you've got an identity that exceeds your lifespan..."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing talks about the legacy that comes with a profession in academics, and how your career can go beyond you.

Keywords: Academia; community; fortune; identity; impact; legacy

Partial Transcript: How do you think living with your convictions has played a role in your sense of personal well-being?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses his ideas in inherent capabilities, and how he thinks this idea has impacted his career.

Keywords: Direction; Purpose; community; convictions; family; identity; legacy; well-being

Partial Transcript: "Whatever my background, I think it's been great to be in a situation where I could be honest, I didn't have to deceive people..."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses the factor of honesty in an academic career, and how he values this honesty. He contrasts this with careers that require compromising the truth.

Keywords: Honesty; convictions; fortune; freedom; morality; service

Partial Transcript: "I'm aware of the fact that I was lucky to be white and male..."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses the societal privileges that he has had, impacting his career, and articulates his worries for the future.

Keywords: fortune; future challenges; privilege

Partial Transcript: How do you think that your education has helped you feel connected to other people or connected to your own self?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing talks about his reluctancy to work with others, but also how academia is inherently collaborative. He discusses what this collaborative environment has taught him.

Keywords: Connections; community; friends; self-knowledge

Partial Transcript: "Instructing and being an academic... really makes you a citizen of the world... and that's been wonderful... I like to think of myself that way."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing talks about the diverse community that he has been exposed to through academics, and the insight he feels he has gained about the world and society.

Keywords: Community; culture; internationality; opportunity

Partial Transcript: How do you think this connection with other people influenced your well-being?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses how he values friendship, and how these friendships have had positive impacts on his life. He talks about how some people may lack this close friendship.

Keywords: Friends; common interests; community; losing friends; well-being

Partial Transcript: "It's challenging to figure out how other people see the world..."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing explains the challenges he feels in understanding others' world-views, especially in light of close friendship. He again brings up the idea of inherent qualities.

Keywords: Perspective; acceptance; perceptions; understanding

Partial Transcript: How do you think that education... has helped you figure out what you think matters in life... what is truly meaningful?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing explains the flow of information central to academia, and how this innovation and his colleagues have had a positive impact on him.

Keywords: academia; community; meaning; purpose

Partial Transcript: "When you choose an occupation... you really choose a subculture."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses the subculture of academia, and how when one chooses a career, they must consider the subculture they are committing to. His experience has been specific to liberal arts, and included experts in all fields.

Keywords: academia; honesty; subculture

Partial Transcript: "I think [education] has prepared me in a way to really see the world, and how it does and doesn't work..."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses how he feels his experience in academia has affected his worldview for the best, and his occasional frustration that others might not have this level of insight.

Keywords: fortune; frustration; insight; isolation; politics

Partial Transcript: "If I'd made a number of different turns in my life, I'd be seeing the world very differently, and probably.. people would see me differently as well."

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing reflects on the choices he has made, and how they have all built up to create him as he is today. He discusses his perceptions, as well as others' perceptions of him.

Keywords: choices; reflection

Partial Transcript: What do you think has made your life worth living?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing discusses what he finds valuable in his life: his good fortune and his opportunities, and how they have allowed him to do things that the enjoys and that he has skill in. He also reflects on his good health.

Keywords: fortune; gratitude; reflection

Partial Transcript: If you could reflect on who you think you might be without the education you've had?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing speculates on what he might have been without academics, discussing the positive qualities that he would have retained, and the negative qualities that might be amplified in a career outside of academics. He focuses on the idea of stability within his job, and wanting to find a balance between risk-taking and stability.

Keywords: control; education; reflection

Partial Transcript: Lastly, is there anything else you'd want to talk about or anything you'd want to tell whoever might be listening?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Benzing hopes that his life might serve as an example for those who listen to this interview.

Keywords: conclusion; reflection