JONATHAN JANSEN: When universities become uncritical sausage factories
'Those who enter university classrooms with whips and approach artworks with fire trample on the idea of the university'
In its very essence, a university is and should be a place marked by reason, deliberation and the free exchange of ideas. It upholds no dogma, which makes it different from a church. It follows no ideology, which makes it different from a political party. It requires no loyalty, which makes it different from a team sport. In the university, multiple voices are and should be heard without fear of reprisal.And throughout, rival ideas are subject to criticism and engagement marked by the absence of personal insult or pointed disdain. It is, moreover, a place in which the right to speak is upheld, especially when the speaker differs from the majority view or any other view. This space is a leveller where the voice of the worker matters as much, and should matter as much, as the voice of the professor. It is in this space where current and future leaders learn the habits of democracy such as the power of thought and considered action to alter human futures. When muscle replaces the mind,...
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