Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Orwell's Delaware
I have been working too hard to work myself up over the controversy that has exploded around the University of Delaware's "diversity" indoctrination program. Fortunately, Stuart Taylor is sufficiently worked up for all of us. Read it all, and ask yourself whether the radicalization of certain disciplines -- the humanities and most social sciences -- has degraded the quality of America's greatest universities. In particular, note the rigorous standards applied by Cornell in its hiring practices:
Another 88er [referring to the Duke professors who publicly condemned the now exonerated Duke lacrosse team - ed.], literature professor Grant Farred, has produced such "scholarship" as a monograph styling Houston Rockets center Yao Ming, a native of China, as "the most profound threat to American empire." In the fall of 2006, Farred accused hundreds of Duke students of "secret racism" against "black female bodies" because they had registered to vote! The students were trying to defeat rogue Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong, who was courting the black vote by pressing rape charges against three white lacrosse players in the face of overwhelming public evidence of innocence.
At no point during or since the rape hoax has Duke President Richard Brodhead or board Chairman Robert Steel even hinted at rebuking Lubiano, Farred, or the other unrepentant faculty persecutors of lacrosse players.
Only in American academia could still another elite university -- Cornell -- proudly hire away and tenure a character such as Farred after he had proved himself a malicious buffoon. "We are very enthusiastic about Professor Farred, whose work everyone in this department has long admired," remarked Cornell English Department Chairwoman Molly Hite. (bold emphasis added)
Ouch.
CWCID: Glenn Reynolds.
5 Comments:
By 
, at
Wed Nov 14, 03:45:00 PM:
Given the stranglehold that the leftist PC idiotarians have on the academy, this is no surprise.
Hearing such nonsense from English teachers led me long ago to the conclusion that there was an inverse correlation between number of English courses taken and love of literature.
At the same time,given tenure requirements, English teachers have to publish, so it should be no surprise that many publish drivel.There should be a way that English teachers who teach many courses and are good teachers could obtain tenure without having to publish drivel.
It is a shame that there is not more attention given to teaching the pre-1900 (or pre-1950!) classics of literature instead of focusing on such drivel.
By 
Fritz, at
Wed Nov 14, 09:05:00 PM:
Yeah, given the state of the field, I'm not sure I would encourage anyone to go into English anymore.
By pst314, at
Thu Nov 15, 12:38:00 PM:
"given tenure requirements...so it should be no surprise that many publish drivel."
Yeah, but why can't they publish innocuous drivel? There's no excuse for publishing malign and evil garbage.
But of course although there is no excuse there is an explanation: English departments tend to be populated by intellectual mediocrities and moral cretins. Certainly every department I have had contact with has supported that generalization.
By pst314, at
Thu Nov 15, 12:39:00 PM:
If you love literature, stay away from departments of english: Otherwise you will waste your time and give employment to the undeserving.
By , at
Fri Nov 16, 01:28:00 AM:
The DUKE lacrosse team were the victims of a bunch of liberal liars and crooks and a bunch of media sharks smelling blood. No wonder the american public is do disgusted with these damn liberal left-wing journalists
