Drawing on decades of studying political violence, dictatorship, and human rights abuses, Ignatieff warned graduates about the destructive power of fear. He argued that fear does not merely hold us back from action—it actively distorts who we are, warping our judgment and suppressing our capacity for compassion and courage. Ignatieff had witnessed firsthand how fear operates in repressive societies, where it silences dissent and erodes the bonds of trust between people. But he emphasized that fear is equally damaging in free societies, where it can lead individuals to shrink from opportunity, avoid moral responsibility, and settle for lives far smaller than what they are capable of living.