Some Syracuse graduates were left with a sense of dejavu after Aaron Sorkin recycled large parts of his 1997 commencement speech for the 2012 address.
The Oscar winning screenwriter even used the same anecdotes about a long married couple and lines he wrote for 'The West Wing'.
Syracuse student Chelsea DeBaise first noticed the similarity in the convocation speech.
"Sorkin's speech contained multiple parallels and several exact quotes to the Sorkin convocation speech he gave at the VPA ceremony in 1997," DeBaise wrote in the school's paper.
"Though parts of the speech were taken out of order, many are featured in both versions at one point or another. The same anecdotes were told, word for word. Still, Sorkin captivated the graduates and audience in the Carrier Dome on Sunday at the 2012 commencement with his powerful delivery."
For the write up, DeBaise even asked Lynn Greenky, a professor in the communications and rhetorical studies department, whether it was ethical of Sorkin to do so.
"Unethical? Economical, maybe," Greenky said of the speech. "But not unethical."
"Speeches, stories, anecdotes and parts thereof are reconfigured and recycled all the time, as long as they are relevant and meaningful, I see no reason to avoid reusing them."
Some Syracuse graduates were left with a sense of dejavu after Aaron Sorkin recycled large parts of his 1997 commencement speech for the 2012 address.
