Reversing the Cult of Speed in Higher Education: The Slow Movement in the Arts and Humanities

A collection of essays written by arts and humanities scholars across disciplines, this book argues that higher education has been compromised by its uncritical acceptance of our culture’s standards of productivity, busyness, and speed. Inspired by the Slow Movement, contributors explain how and why university culture has come to value productivity over contemplation and rapidity over slowness. Chapter authors argue that the arts and humanities offer a cogent critique of fast culture in higher education, and reframe the discussion of the value of their fields by emphasizing the dialectic between speed and slowness.

Stephannie Gearhart is Associate Professor of English at Bowling Green State University, USA.

Jonathan Chambers is Professor of Theater and Film at Bowling Green State University, USA.