Avocation
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American First Lady Bess Truman with Girl Scouts and their volunteer leaders
An avocation is an activity that someone engages in as a hobby outside their main occupation. There are many examples of people whose professions were the ways that they made their livings, but for whom their activities outside their workplaces were their true passions in life.[1][2] Occasionally, as with Lord Baden-Powell and others, people who pursue an avocation are more remembered by history for their avocation than for their professional career.
Many times a person's regular vocation may lead to an avocation. Many forms of humanitarian campaigning, such as work for organizations like Amnesty International and Greenpeace, may be done by people involved in the law or human rights issues as part of their work.[3]
Many people involved with youth work pursue this as an avocation.[4]
Avocation in literature
.mw-parser-output .templatequoteoverflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequoteciteline-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0
But yield who will to their separation,
My object in living is to unite
My avocation and my vocation
As my two eyes make one in sight.
Only where love and need are one,
And the work is play for mortal stakes,
Is the deed ever really done
For heaven and the future's sakes.— Robert Frost, Two Tramps in Mud Time, st. 9
People whose avocations were not their vocations
A
August Wilhelm Ambros
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Adams, Frederick | luthier | physician |
| Allen, Woody | jazz musician | filmmaker |
| Alston, Joseph Cameron | badminton player | federal agent |
| Ambros, August Wilhelm | musical archaeologist | Austrian civil service |
B
Baden-Powell, Robert
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Baden-Powell, Robert | Scouting | Military Officer |
| Balzary, Michael | non-profit Management | Musician |
| Barr, William | Bagpiper | Attorney |
| Benedetto, Anthony | Painter | Singer |
| Bennett, William | Clarinetist | Physicist |
| Billroth, Theodor | Pianist | Surgeon |
| Blades, Rubén | Activist | Musician |
| Blom, Gertrude | Social anthropologist | Journalist |
| Borodin, Alexander | Composer | Chemist |
| Brontë, Charlotte | Author | Governess |
| Butchart, Harvey | Grand Canyon Explorer | Mathematics Professor |
C
Copernicus
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Carpenter, Charles | naturalist | minister |
| Chekhov, Anton | writer, playwright | physician |
| Copeland, Johnny | boxer | blues guitarist |
| Copernicus, Nicolaus | Astronomer | Roman Catholic cleric |
D
Olivia d'Abo
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| d'Abo, Olivia | singer-songwriter | Actress |
| Darger, Henry | Author, Illustrator | Custodian |
| Derleth, August | naturalist | Novelist |
| Duncan, Watson | Actor | Professor |
E
Johannes Scotus Eriugena
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Eriugena, Johannes Scotus | Theologian | Poet |
F
Veronica Franco
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Fermat, Pierre de | Mathematician | Lawyer |
| Foecke, Tim | Whittler, Wooden Toy Maker | Metallurgist |
| Franco, Veronica | Poet | Courtesan |
| Ford, Harrison | Carpenter | Actor |
Feynman, Richard[5] | Drummer | Physicist |
G
J. Paul Getty
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Getty, J. Paul | Art collector | Oilman |
| Goldblum, Jeff | jazz musician | Actor |
H
Hilda Hewlett
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Hass, Rudolph | botany | letter carrier |
| Hewlett, Hilda | woodwork, metalwork | aviatrice |
| Hillary, Sir Edmund | mountaineer | beekeeper |
| Hohlbaum, Robert | writer | librarian |
| Houston, Charles | mountaineer | physician |
I
Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Ingres, Jean Auguste Dominique | violinist | painter |
| Ives, Charles | composer | insurance agent |
J
Brian Jacques
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Jacques, Brian | author | milkman |
| Jędruch, Jacek | historian | Nuclear engineer |
K
Ada Lovelace
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Kaleeba, Noerine | activist | physiotherapist |
| Kafka, Franz | writer | insurance assessor |
| Kent, Corita | Artist, printmaker | Roman Catholic Nun |
| King, Augusta Ada | mathematician | courtier |
| Kogan, Richard, M.D. | pianist | psychiatrist |
| Krakauer, Jon | mountaineer | journalist/writer |
| Kruger, Barbara | artist | graphic designer |
L
Hedy Lamarr
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Lamarr, Hedy | Inventor | Actress |
| Lifton, Robert Jay | Cartoonist | Psychiatrist |
| Lluberas, Gerónimo | musician | physician |
| Luna, James | artist | counselor |
M
Gaston Means
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Maier, Vivian | Photographer | au pair |
| Means, Gaston | Con artist | salesman |
| Morrison, Toni | Author | editor |
| Moses, Anna Mary Robertson | Painter | farmer |
N
Emperor Norton
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Norton, Joshua A. | Emperor of these United States | businessman |
O
Ottendorfer, Anna
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Obici, Amedeo | farmer | businessman |
| Ottendorfer, Anna | philanthropist | journalist |
P
Michael Alfred Peszke
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Peszke, Michael Alfred | historian | psychiatrist |
| Pekar, Harvey | comic book writer | file clerk |
Q
Quirinus
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Quirinus of Neuss | missionary | tribune |
R
Jeri Ryan
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Radi, Akbar | Playwright | teacher |
| Rodriguez, Sixto | Folk Musician | Demolition worker |
| Roget, Peter Mark | Lexicographer | Physician |
| Rousseau, Henri | Painter | Tax Collector |
| Ryan, Jeri | Chef | actress |
S
Shelley, Mary
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Saro-Wiwa, Ken | Environmental activist | Television producer |
| Shelley, Mary | Political activist | Author |
| Smith, Walter Parry Haskett | Bouldering | lawyer |
| Stevens, Wallace | Poet | Insurance executive[6] |
T
Tolkien, J. R. R.
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Thomas, Jean | folk festival promoter | stenographer |
| Tov, Baal Shem | arbitrator and mediator | Rabbi |
| Tolkien, J. R. R. | novelist | Philologist |
U
Tracey Ullman
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Ullman, Tracey | knitter and author[7] | actress |
V
Jean-Claude Van Damme
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Van Damme, Jean-Claude | martial artist | actor |
W
Wells, Ida B.
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Weller, Peter | Art historian | actor |
| Wells, Ida B. | suffragette | Journalist |
| White, Henry | fox hunter | diplomat |
| White, Kate | author | editor-in-chief |
| Whorf, Benjamin Lee | Linguist | fire prevention engineer |
| Williams, William Carlos | Poet | Pediatrician[6] |
X
Xenakis, Iannis
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Xenakis, Iannis | composer | architect |
Y
Yada, Lena
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Yada, Lena | surfer | model, actress |
Z
Zappa, Frank
| Person | Avocation | Vocation |
|---|---|---|
| Zappa, Frank | 20th-century composer | Popular music (composer, performer, producer) |
Fictional people whose avocations were not their vocations
Bruce Wayne as his alter ego Batman
| Person | Avocation | Vocation | |
|---|---|---|---|
Kent, Clark / Kal-El | Superhero | Reporter | |
| Stark, Tony | Superhero | Industrialist | |
| Wayne, Bruce | crime fighter | Philanthropist/Industrialist/Heir | |
| Quijano, Alonso | Knight-errant | Hidalgo | |
| Schrute, Dwight | Beet farmer | Paper salesman |
See also
- Alter ego
- Otium
- Secret identity
- Vocation
- Volunteering
- List of amateur mathematicians
References
^ Travis Saunders. "Avocation-vs-vocation". Retrieved 10 February 2011..mw-parser-output cite.citationfont-style:inherit.mw-parser-output .citation qquotes:"""""""'""'".mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registrationcolor:#555.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration spanborder-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output code.cs1-codecolor:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-errordisplay:none;font-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-errorfont-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-maintdisplay:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-formatfont-size:95%.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-leftpadding-left:0.2em.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-rightpadding-right:0.2em
^ Robert Miller (10 February 2010). "Your avocation may save your life". The News-Times. Hearst Corporation. Retrieved 10 February 2011.
^ Boyd, B (20 October 2006). "A secret history of the old Ball game". Irish Times. Retrieved 2007-07-04.
^ Craig Giammona. "Avocation in Wood". Bowdoin. Retrieved 10 February 2011.
^ Gleick, James (1992). Genius: The Life and Science of Richard Feynman. Pantheon Books. p. 296. ISBN 978-0-679-40836-9. OCLC 243743850.
^ ab Neary, Lynn (6 September 2016). "Idea For 'Gentleman in Moscow' Came From Many Nights in Luxury Hotels". National Public Radio (Morning Edition). Retrieved 2016-09-06.
^ "Tracey Ullman Takes on Knitting". NPR. NPR.org. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
External links
Avocationat Wikipedia's sister projects
Definitions from Wiktionary
Media from Wikimedia Commons
Quotations from Wikiquote
Texts from Wikisource
Alex Preston (12 June 2016). "If you want to be a better person, find something to do outside work". Quartz. Atlantic Media. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
