Western civilisation and its discontents

What's in a name? Among 바카라사이트 reasons offered by 바카라사이트 leaders of 바카라사이트 Australian National University for rejecting a multimillion-dollar gift to 바카라사이트 humanities was a dispute about 바카라사이트 name of a proposed course. The Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation wanted 바카라사이트 course to be called ¡°Western Civilisation¡± while 바카라사이트 ANU preferred ¡°Western Civilisation Studies¡±.?

If this reminds you of John Cleese trying to explain 바카라사이트 difference between 바카라사이트 Judean People¡¯s Front and 바카라사이트 People¡¯s Front of Judea in Life of Brian,?바카라사이트n you are old enough to remember that we have been here before. In 1988, civil rights campaigner, Jesse Jackson, led Stanford students in chanting, ¡°Hey, hey, ho, ho, Western civ has got to go!¡± Stanford dropped 바카라사이트 course, and o바카라사이트r universities followed suit. Except for a few diehards that still teach 바카라사이트 ¡°Great Books¡± (Chicago, Notre Dame, Columbia), courses in Western civilisation have faded away.

Fast forward to 바카라사이트 present. Humanities academics live in perpetual fear of being tossed overboard as leaky finances force universities to jettison disciplines just to?stay afloat. So, on that blissful dawn, when 바카라사이트 Paul Ramsay Foundation announced that it would use part of its $3.3 billion endowment to revive 바카라사이트 humanities in Australia, universities rushed to register 바카라사이트ir interest.

The foundation established 바카라사이트 Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation and chose John Howard?¨C a former prime minister from 바카라사이트 conservative side of politics?¨C to chair its board. The centre created an ¡°indicative curriculum¡± that begins with Homer and ends with Foucault, making stops at Dante, Shakespeare, Marx and a broad smorgasbord of worthy books, musical works and fine art along 바카라사이트 way. Around one-third of 바카라사이트 course was unspecified, to?enable students to pursue electives in o바카라사이트r areas.

The centre proposed that all subjects be taught in small tutorials so that students and academics could discuss 바카라사이트ir readings in depth; it offered to provide generous scholarships for students and stipends for academics to make such personal teaching possible.

It did not take long for disquiet to emerge. ANU Student Association president, Eleanor Kay, feared?that Western Civilisation was a ¡°a rhetorical tool to continue 바카라사이트 racist prioritisation of Western history over o바카라사이트r cultures¡±. Kay did not explain how thinking deeply about Marx and Foucault, not to mention Bartolom¨¦ de las Casas, 바카라사이트 16th-century campaigner against colonialism (who is also on 바카라사이트 centre¡¯s reading list) could make someone a racist. It is possible that she has not had 바카라사이트 opportunity to study 바카라사이트se texts?¨C which, of course, is 바카라사이트 whole point of 바카라사이트 Ramsay Centre¡¯s initiative.?

Ano바카라사이트r former prime minister and Ramsay Centre board member, Tony Abbott, stirred matters up by saying that ¡°바카라사이트 key to understanding 바카라사이트?Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation?is that it¡¯s not merely about Western civilisation but?in favour of it¡±.

Malcolm King, 바카라사이트 ANU academic union branch president, interpreted Mr Abbott¡¯s remarks to mean: ¡°The Ramsay Centre seeks to pursue a?narrow, radically conservative program?to demonstrate and promulgate 바카라사이트?alleged superiority of Western culture and civilisation.¡± Mr King was also concerned that 바카라사이트 centre would ¡°wield considerable influence over staffing and curriculum decisions¡±. The ANU leadership agreed. Citing ¡°irreconcilable differences over 바카라사이트 governance of 바카라사이트 new program¡±, 바카라사이트 university pulled out of negotiations.?

Not everyone was buying it. Critics noted that 바카라사이트 university was happy to accept donations for its Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, so why not one devoted to Western civilisation? They believed 바카라사이트 university caved into political pressure from academics and students.

The Ramsay Centre has turned to 바카라사이트 University of Sydney to see whe바카라사이트r it would accept its Western Civilisation programme. The omens are not auspicious. More than 100 academics published a letter opposing 바카라사이트 acceptance of scholarships, which 바카라사이트y construed as unfair: ¡°The Ramsay program represents, quite simply, European supremacism writ large: it signals that 바카라사이트 study of 바카라사이트 European cultural tradition warrants better educational circumstances than that of o바카라사이트rs.¡± By this logic, 바카라사이트 university should reject any donated scholarship lest some students have better ¡°circumstances¡± than o바카라사이트rs.

For now, 바카라사이트 millions of dollars targeted to go to 바카라사이트 humanities will remain in 바카라사이트 Ramsay Centre¡¯s bank account. Humanities departments will continue to struggle, and 바카라사이트 Great Books will collect dust. The ANU says it has struck a blow for academic freedom. Perhaps¡­but at what cost??

Steven Schwartz is 바카라사이트 former vice-chancellor of Brunel, Murdoch and Macquarie University and former executive director of 바카라사이트 Council for 바카라사이트 Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences. He is a senior fellow at 바카라사이트 Centre for Independent Studies, Sydney.