Politics of Knowledge : The Commercialization of the University, the Professions, and Print Culture

Cultural analysis of the American university system.

Richard Ohmann's work is in a class by itself. While editor of College English, and in the three books he published since then, he has created America's most comprehensive vision of how teaching and scholarship are at once part of the university, of society and of history. In Politics of Knowledge, Ohmann's essays and interviews analyze, explain and criticize the roles of the university, the academic professions and publishing in a rearranged America. Focusing on the opposed movements of a more open university and overwhelmingly powerful multinational corporations, he offers language and formulations that will help present generations move closer to the hope that teaching and scholarly work can enhance the lives of all.

This scholar, teacher and activist sets his often anecdotal and autobiographical reflections within the broad tapestry of historical, economic and material conditions. It is this combination of the long backward-looking personal perspective and adept critical analysis that have made his work a resource for professors and students alike.

RICHARD OHMANN is Professor Emeritus of English at Wesleyan University and the author of three Wesleyan books, English in America (1996), Politics of Letters (1987), and Making and Selling Culture (1996). JANICE RADWAY is Frances Fox Professor of Literature at Duke University.