Keeper Of The Flame

These are unusually public days for Caroline Kennedy. As a member of the famous political clan that is seen by many as the closest thing Americans have to royalty, she has spent most of her life enduring media scrutiny. But the 44-year-old daughter of President John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline has always sought a more private existence. She followed in her father's footsteps and attended Harvard but eschewed the family tradition of politics. She earned a law degree from Columbia University and — though she has never practiced law — co-authored two well-received books on legal topics, The Right to Privacy and In Our Defense: The Bill of Rights in Action. Her latest project is Profiles in Courage for Our Time, an update of her father's 1956 Pulitzer Prize-winning book Profiles in Courage. The collection of essays by more than a dozen authors praises individuals whose unwavering devotion to principle has often come at great cost. All celebrate independence of character, but some of the selections are particularly surprising. Watergate reporter Bob Woodward's contribution applauds President Gerald Ford for pardoning his disgraced predecessor, Richard Nixon, an act for which Ford was widely criticized.

Since 1989, the Kennedy Library Foundation has conferred the Profile in Courage Award on elected officials whose actions reflect the spirit of the book. "Many of these people who take courageous stands often are not reelected," says Kennedy. "Then over time, people recognize the courage that they had to stand up for what they believed." As president of the Foundation, Kennedy helps choose the recipients. This year they included the first international honoree, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, whom Kennedy calls "an outstanding and courageous figure."

Kennedy was four when her father was inaugurated in 1961 and just five days shy of her sixth birthday when he was assassinated. Determined to preserve some semblance of normality, her mother famously insisted that the birthday party go on as scheduled. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis died of cancer in 1994, and with John Jr.'s death in 1999 when the plane he was piloting crashed, Caroline is the last surviving member of the martyred president's immediate family. Public interest in her is more intense than ever, and Kennedy watchers believe she feels an increasing sense of duty to carry the family torch. "I guess I don't really think it's increased," she responds. "It's something that I feel a responsibility for. I also feel that my parents' legacy can stand on its own, without my help. But it's something I believe in and am happy to help participate in." Last year she helped organize "Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years," an exhibition at New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art that celebrated her mother's renowned fashion style. The exhibit was a resounding success and will travel to Paris' Museum of Fashion and Textile in November. Kennedy also edited The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, which became an instant best seller.

Kennedy lives with her artist and designer husband Edwin Schlossberg and their three children in Manhattan. As the busy mother of Rose, 13, Tatiana, 12, and John, 9, she admits that it is sometimes hard to find time for writing. "Between my own children and my mother's and brother's affairs, I had a lot of family obligations over the last few years. These kinds of books, in a way, are part of that process." But she says she will never write the one book the publishing industry and the public long for — a memoir. "I can't ever imagine doing that," she winces. "I feel there are a lot of ways to learn about people. It's not always necessary to have a memoir.

Q&A

TIME: Do you read any of the books about your family?
Kennedy: I don't. There are a lot of other things that I want to learn about. I kind of know that territory. I did read some books by people who served with my father in the White House.
TIME: You have enormous fame but strive for privacy. Is that hard?
Kennedy: It's been a part of my life, and the reasons for it are something I'm immensely proud of — my parents' work and the work of my uncles [Robert and Ted]. In that way, it's a very nice tribute to them. I know that's the source of it. It's not something I think about as much as you might think I do.

TIME: What would be a fitting memorial to your brother?
Kennedy: His spirit lives on in people he knew and even people he didn't know. That's really the best kind of memorial.

TIME: Would you ever write about your brother?
Kennedy: I don't think so. I'm not going to do that now.

TIME: Would you ever run for office?
Kennedy: I don't have any plans to do that right now. I don't plan ahead. My kids are young, and I'm really happy to be able to be around. But I do care about issues, and I'm interested in them. So I don't see that now, but you know, I have a long life ahead of me.