Over the past year, The Chronicle Review has asked some hard questions of academia. Is it responsible for its own peril, as Jill Lepore suggests? Are humanities professors partially to blame for the nation’s toxic political climate? Is there something erotic about mentorship? Are most higher-ed jobs simply BS? Have professors lost their sense of humor?
We’ve also encountered academics going through trying experiences — the professor of comparative literature whose book was attributed to her male co-author on NPR, the historian of science who narrowly escaped the “intellectual dark web” — and we’ve visited the “world’s most bizarre scholarly conference,” in the Arizona desert.
Here are 10 articles that strongly connected with readers in 2018. We think they’re worth at least one more look.
-
The ReviewWhat It’s Like to Be a Woman in the Academy
We asked dozens of women about gender and power on campus. Here’s what they told us. -
The Review
Higher Education Is Drowning in BS
It is not just contributing to this country’s disastrous political condition; it is putting decent civilization at risk. -
Backgrounder
I Worked With Avital Ronell. I Believe Her Accuser.
When genuine criticism is undertaken at the risk of ostracism, marginalization, retribution — this is a culture where abuses like hers grow. -
The Review
What’s the Most Influential Book of the Past 20 Years?
Scholars from across the academy give us their picks. -
The Review
What’s So Dangerous About Jordan Peterson?
Not long ago, he was an obscure psychology professor. Now he leads a flock of die-hard disciples. -
The Review
There Is No Case for the Humanities
We talk about “skills,” “relevance,” “engagement,” and “values,” but deep down we know the ideas behind the words are hollow. -
The Review
The Intellectual War on Science
It’s wreaking havoc in universities and jeopardizing the progress of research. -
The Review
The Ugly Truth of Being a Black Professor in America
I’ve received hundreds of racist emails, phone messages, and letters. This is what it’s like to be hated. -
The Review
Design Thinking Is a Boondoggle
Its adherents think it will save higher ed. They’re delusional. -
The Review
Why Everybody Loses When Someone Leaves Academe
We cope with it in ways that largely erase the people we lose, ignore their pain and grief, and suppress our own.
