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Hugh Massingberd, 60, Laureate for the Departed, Dies

Hugh Massingberd, 60, Laureate for the Departed, Dies
Mr. Massingberd was a celebrated former obituaries editor of The Daily Telegraph of London who made a …

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Hugh Massingberd, 60, Laureate for the Departed, Dies

Hugh Massingberd, 60, Laureate for the Departed, Dies
Mr. Massingberd was a celebrated former obituaries editor of The Telegraph of London who made a once-dreary …

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What Happened To New York: A History Of The 00’s So Far [The Decade In Review]

What Happened To New York: A History Of The 00’s So Far [The Decade In Review]

All those people—such as myself!—who complain about what New …

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Judt also denounces the balkanization created by interdisciplinary ethnic studies programs. Multiculturalism “created lots and lots of microconstituencies, which universities didn’t have the courage to oppose,” he said. “It’s much more like a supermarket — kids can take pretty much any courses they like: Jewish kids take Jewish studies, gay students gay studies, black students African-American studies. You no longer have a university, but a series of identity constituencies all studying themselves.” Some say this kind of identity-based thinking is at odds with the true purpose of education — something canon traditionalists can misunderstand as badly as their multiculturalist opponents. “What Americans yearn for in literature is self-recognition,” said Mark Lilla, a professor of political philosophy and religion who just left the University of Chicago for Columbia. “That’s where the conservatives went wrong. The case for the canon itself isn’t a case for book camp and becoming a citizen in the West.” Wrestling with difficult, often inaccessible works is “the most alienating experience possible,” he continued. “When you read Toni Morrison, there’s no alienation. It affirms your Americanism.

Judt also denounces the balkanization created by interdisciplinary ethnic studies programs. Multiculturalism “created lots and lots of microconstituencies, which universities didn’t have the courage to …

[read more]