Guest View: Fabric of people is what counts

Maybe it’s the perspective a long life brings, but I find myself eyeing with some skepticism the glut of “personal brands” that assault us every day on television, in print, and through social media. Entertainers, celebrities, politicians striving for acclaim, artists and writers who’ve mastered the public relations game, journalists and media stars who are building their national profiles—all are “important” in terms of the attention they garner. But are they actually important?

In some ways, of course, the question is impossible to answer. Each of us has our own definition of what matters an...