What are universities good for? This question has generated intense debate, particularly since the culture wars and Allan Bloom’s The Closing of the American Mind. Where radicals once critiqued universities’ elitism, that argument has recently been turned on is head: many academic administrators and business leaders now see a university education as little more than job training for the information economy. Such pressures threaten universities’ ability to play the critical social role that justifies them.
Love the Questions is a provocative look at the central questions facing university education today. Drawing on decades of experience in the scholarly trenches, Ian Angus considers the future of academic freedom in an increasingly corporate university setting, the role of technology, interdisciplinary study, and the possibilities for critical enlightenment and solidarity.
Part of our Semaphore Series.
| Subject | Politics/Education/Philosophy |
|---|---|
| Published | November 2009 |
| Price | $14.95 CDN |
| Pages | 176 pp (Paper) |
| Dimensions | 5″ × 7″ × 0.25″ |
| ISBN-10 | 1-8940374-05 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1894037-40-2 |
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Reviews
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Gerald Pillay, in The Times Higher Education writes:
Administrators and politicians should read this book. I fear some of them may dismiss it as outdated idealism, but that would be a grave mistake. Angus concedes that some changes to the sector may be irreversible, but emphasises that we must seek to ensure that the university never loses its informing humanist tradition. It is easier said than done, but well worth struggling for.
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Bonnie L. Stelmach, in Canadian Journal of Higher Education writes:
This “little book”, as Angus modestly describes it, is tome-like in its elucidation of the forces that have altered the university from its traditional ideals into a contemporary corporate ethos. …his book is instructive and timely. It is written for the academic fraternity as a reminder to tether, as Angus does, to what inspired our pursuits for knowledge in the first place.
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Maria Victoria Gugliette, in Topia: The Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies writes:
Ian Angus’s work is a courageous and eye-opening reflection of the present condition of universities in North America. …What Angus has crafted is a work that not only concerns those directly involved in academic life, but also the general public.”
News
- Does the University Have a Future in the Network Society?
News May 4th 2010 - Review of Love the Questions
News May 4th 2010 - Love the Questions Round Table
News March 7th 2010
About the Author
Ian Angus is professor of Humanities at Simon Fraser University. He has written or edited nine books on critical theory and political thought, including A Border Within: National Identity, Cultural Plurality, and Wilderness and Disfigurations: Discourse/Critique/Ethics. He lives in East Vancouver with his wife and daughter.
Also by Ian Angus
- Emergent Publics – An Essay on Social Movements and Democracy
