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Proust Questionnaire
JANE GOODALL
Moving to Tanzania in 1960 to study chimpanzees, Jane Goodall changed the way we view both our closest genetic relatives and ourselves. Now 70 and recently honored as a Dame of the British Empire, she pauses here following her latest journey to Africa, which was documented for two Animal Planet specials
Proust Questionnaire
JANE GOODALL
Moving to Tanzania in 1960 to study chimpanzees, Jane Goodall changed the way we view both our closest genetic relatives and ourselves. Now 70 and recently honored as a Dame of the British Empire, she pauses here following her latest journey to Africa, which was documented for two Animal Planet specials
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Sitting by myself in the forest in Gombe National Park watching one of the chimpanzee mothers with her family.
What is your greatest fear?
That I shall be tortured and be a coward.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Hypocrisy.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Long-distance phone calls to my friends.
What is your favorite journey?
My favorite ever journey was my first trip from Nairobi City to the Serengeti to Olduvai Gorge before it was famous, when there were no roads and all the animals were there. We were in an overloaded Land Rover, four people and two Dalmatians.
What do you dislike most about your appearance?
Aging skin!
What or who is the greatest love of your life?
My childhood companion and teacher—my dog, Rusty.
When and where were you happiest?
The early 60s, when I was alone at Gombe with the chimpanzees.
Which talent would you most like to have?
Ability to learn languages.
What is your current state of mind?
Deep concern at the state of the planet, environmental and social.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I need to be 20 years younger—there is too much to do.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Starting our youth program, Roots & Shoots, along with helping to blur the line between humans and the rest of the animal kingdom.
What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Knowing you have let someone down, betrayed their trust.
What is your favorite occupation?
Observing animals alone in the wilderness.
What is your most marked characteristic?
Determination/optimism.
What do you most value in your friends?
Being able to share happiness and sadness and have a good laugh.
Who are your favorite writers?
Shakespeare, Tolkien, Mary Wesley.
Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Robin Hood.
Who are your heroes in real life?
My mother, until her death; dedicated teachers; Kofi Annan; Nelson Mandela; Muhammad Yunus.
What is it that you most dislike?
Receptions and dinners in noisy places with people talking too loud, riding in stretch limos, waste.
How would you like to die?
Peacefully and before losing my physical and especially my mental facilities.
What is your motto?
"As thy days, so shall thy strength be."
