<p>Getting used to new habits is a part of the college experience. </p>
<p>And that can be stressful.</p>
<p>This article seems a bit incoherent to me -- as though the author wrote two shorter articles and then smashed them together when the editor decided that a longer piece was needed.</p>
<p>Yes, college is a sleepover with grades. Yes, college admissions is a stressful sort-of-meritocracy. But these two things have little or nothing to do with each other. The culture shock aspect of college would be there even if every kid in America was randomly assigned to a campus.</p>
<p>Maybe the author was sleep-deprived with homesickness when writing the article. ;)</p>
<p>I had difficulty following this article. </p>
<p>College can be a stressful change.
College admissions are evil.
Everyone is a business major.</p>
<p>I guess my response would be:</p>
<p>If you don't want to change, stay where you are.</p>
<p>College admissions are as stressful as you want them to be. If you are Ivy or bust, it won't be the same as applying to your in-state University.</p>
<p>There are a lot of people that want their degree in something that translates directly to a specific job. Nursing degree--nurse. Accounting degree--accountant. Liberal Arts don't seem worthwhile to them. I should know, I live in an area where they cannot figure out why I would allow my kids to major in Political Science and Philosophy, and pay money for them to do it.</p>
<p>I was surprised by some of the figures. I thought there were way more liberal arts majors than there are.</p>
<p>And yes, something college teaches you is that even though you were the top of your class in HS, there are lots of other people out there just as smart, if not smarter.</p>
<p>Graduate school is even more humbling.</p>
<p>I'm with the, "What precisely was the point?" group. Strange piece.</p>
<p>This article was introduced to CC last month, and the reaction was a bit different ... back then. :)</p>
<p>Thanks, Xiggi, this shows the power of a thread title to influence interpretation of an article.</p>
<p>The author cites stats about majors. </p>
<p>He obviously did not major in writing. What a mishmash.</p>
<p>Louis Menand majored in English and has degrees from Pomona, Harvard, and Columbia. I found the article entertaining -- especially the point that going to college was like staying over at a friend's house and eating a tuna sandwich made by some else's mother...</p>
<p>
[quote]
Louis Menand majored in English and has degrees from Pomona, Harvard, and Columbia.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Oops - one has to be careful with claiming degrees on the banks of the Charles River, even by proxy. Louis Menand is the Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Professor of English and American Literature and Language at Harvard, but his degrees are a 73 B.A. from Pomona and a 75 M.A. and 80 Ph.D. from Columbia. </p>
<p>His stint at Harvard Law School was too short to earn a degree.</p>
<p>Source: <a href="http://www.fas.harvard.edu/%7Eamciv/faculty/menand.shtml%5B/url%5D">http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~amciv/faculty/menand.shtml</a></p>
<p>Xiggi, OK, assume is the kind of long reading they give on the SAT CR test. Can you think of a good answer to the question, "what best describes the author's point?" A, B, C, or D. </p>
<p>I have to admit, there were so many points made I'm not sure what the purpose of the article was either.</p>
<p>This article makes no sense. What was the point? It seems to have multiple points.</p>
<p>The point(s) is (are): college means experiencing ways of doing things that are different from what you are used to -- i.e., outside your comfort zone. This causes stress; but basically, what it gives students is what most Americans want: a system based for the most part on merit and one that is accessible to a large number of people. A meritocrisy is stressful, but the stress has the positive value of teaching humility, which is a good thing.</p>
<p>I pointed out on the other thread that Louis Menand used this as a commencement speech 4 years ago. Looking it over again, I think that only PART of it is from that speech, and the rest are things that added, perhaps parts of other speeches, or perhaps written specially for this article. So Marian, your observation that this seems like it was smashed together is right on target. Not his best work.</p>
<p>And the article is in The New Yorker! Parker, Thurber, et al must be rolling in their graves. Not to mention what Updike must be thinking!!!</p>
<p>Why is that? It seems like a quintessential "Talk of the Town" type piece: catchy opening, loosely discursive ramble through several aspects of a topic, graceful use of English. I'm not seeing your point.</p>
<p>
[quote]
College can be a stressful change.
College admissions are evil.
Everyone is a business major.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Lol that's what I got out of it. Poorly written, and the "interest getter" wasn't very good at all.</p>
<p>Some amusing points, but a definite cohesion problem in this piece of writing.</p>
<p>I've told my kids that going to college is like "camp for adults". Spend some time in class, read and discuss interesting works, choose from a menu of concerts/sports/activities, socialize, tidy your room and eat what's served. Such a life!</p>
<p>HAHAHAH, so sad. I can't believe you gave Xiggi an SAT reference xD hahahah, oh that's funny.</p>