Re: Text and authority in 18th-century China

Molly Freeman (mollyfreeman who-is-at telis.org)
Wed, 29 Apr 1998 09:29:48 -0700

John McCreary asks in forward from Martin Nystrand:

Am I totally insane to imagine that in this description I see a process
>like that which has led the academy to its present malaise, i.e., the
>replacement of teacher-student relations in which the teacher's presence
>and voice play a central role with a focus on texts that exist like so many
>commodities arrayed on a supermarket shelf, ready to be consumed however
>the consumer wills? There is something about that "specialized community"
>whose members are more concerned with what they write for each other's
>consumption than with speaking across the barrier of their (specialized)
>literacy to reach a public from whom they become increasingly estranged.Add
>that "methodological doubt" and fights over "author-ity." Something sounds
>remarkably familiar here.
>
John and Martin,

I would say there are parallels, but ask you to unpack some of the connections
you are making here. I am not sure I would draw the lines exactly as you may be
drawing them. The citation from Zito is very interesting. Thank you for sharing
it.
I hope you remain engaged in the conversation.

M.Freeman