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Privilege: Harvard and the Education of the Ruling Class - Softcover

Douthat, Ross Gregory

  • 3.42 out of 5 stars
    343 ratings by Goodreads
 
9781401307554: Privilege: Harvard and the Education of the Ruling Class
Softcover
ISBN 10: 1401307558 ISBN 13: 9781401307554
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2006

Synopsis

In the spirit of Scott Turow's One L and David Brooks's Bobos in Paradise, a penetrating critique of elite universities and the culture of privilege they perpetuate, written by a recent Harvard alumnus.

Part memoir, part social critique, Privilege is an absorbing assessment of one of the world's most celebrated universities: Harvard. In this sharp, insightful account, Douthat evaluates his social and academic education—most notably, his frustrations with pre-established social hierarchies and the trumping of intellectual rigor by political correctness and personal ambition. The book addresses the spectacles of his time there, such as the embezzlement scandal at the Hasty Pudding Theatricals and Professor Cornel West's defection to Princeton. He also chronicles the more commonplace but equally revealing experiences, including social climbing, sexual relations, and job hunting.

While the book's narrative centers on Harvard, its main arguments have a much broader concern: the state of the American college experience. Privilege is a pointed reflection on students, parents, and even administrators and professors who perceive specific schools merely as stepping-stones to high salaries and elite social networks rather than as institutions entrusted with academic excellence.

Full of insightful perceptions and illuminating detail, Privilege is sure to spark endless debates inside and outside the ivied walls.

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About the Author

While at Harvard, Ross Gregory Douthat wrote a biweekly column for the Harvard Crimson and edited the Harvard Salient. He now works at the Atlantic Monthly and lives in Washington, D.C.

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Publisher
Grand Central Publishing
Publication date
2006
Language
English
ISBN 10 
1401307558
ISBN 13 
9781401307554
Binding
Paperback
Edition number
1
Number of pages
304
Rating
  • 3.42 out of 5 stars
    343 ratings by Goodreads