Duke students offended by reading assignment lol

Parents Forum
61

PG-- The purpose of art and the following discussion is non-threatening and pretty much non-political. At least I would hope! And the purpose of art (my opinion) is to open minds. It is a good vehicle to stimulate discussion.
Sort of like “no accounting for taste”…
Your question is what good humanities classes are based on.

If that were the assignment I would think it would be broad enough–different types of art encompassing more than nudes. Art is so broad a category that if only nudes were listed it would give me pause. If I didn’t look at any nudes I’d still be able to participate. Convince me later.
Even if I didn’t view Michelangelo’s David as “art” and said “I think he needed a fig leaf!” it would be my opinion and non-political. If I said “I don’t do nudes” it would generate discussion that I could still relate to while perhaps someone could convince me of the errors of my way. It would generate discussion that would be arguable on the ART front. You can bring that discussion always back to “what is art?”
Being labeled a prude over a pariah makes a difference.
Plus art has history behind it–why is this a “lasting” piece? What makes it “a masterpiece”?"

And “Red” which was one of the Duke choices (again, haven’t read it–I’d like too now) was about “what makes it art?”

62

Lots of mockery here, but I’m not sure why we need to read books WITH naked imagery in them, if this is the case. Amazon only shows the most benign parts of a couple of chapters, so I don’t know.

I don’t want to see depictions of child rape either, as in The Kite Runner, if someone is doing such drawings.

There is just so much better material in the world with which to fill our heads.

I’m with the poster above that this indeed smacks of agenda.

Having multiple degrees, I can state unequivocally that we were never assigned visual depictions of sex to review, but it was mentioned obliquely (or more obviously) in different ways in novels. We read Shakespeare, and Edith Wharton, and Pearl Buck, and Earnest Hemingway, etc. I really don’t want to look at it. and I don’t blame the students either.

63

I asked my sister about her college reading list for the summer before matriculation. She replied, What’s your point? She said that after years of great books, that there were few she had not read. She read the new books and reviewed to old. I pretty much did the same as she did and suspect the lists would have been very comparable despite her attending large, state university while I went to a small Catholic women’s college. We agree with other posters that personal believes are not preserved by restricting ourselves to books that only reflect our beliefs Challenging beliefs may change them, but may also strengthen them and provide clarity about what and how we believe. Interestingly, it never occurred to either of us not to read some to many of the required books. Of course, the sisters in our high school had our mother’s phone number and weren’t afraid to use it.

Now about Christian beliefs. Students, Duke has no obligation to protect your personal beliefs. Further, there are schools that are consistent with your Christian beliefs that you may attend and you are expected.by me and the school to get cracking on their required reading list. I appreciate and even applaud that you have deeply held Christian beliefs. Duke is not restricting your religious freedom. Removal of the offending text(s) because of your beliefs may mean your beliefs are infringing on mine. Actually, may is a poor word choice. I am Irish Catholic, liberal, and a Democrat by heritage and personal choice, except the Irish part. But that is besides the point. Whoever I am I have the right and expectation to the read and learn broadly.

I am not familiar, yet, with the book that is mentioned in these posts. I am sure the Sisters of Loretto would have required it in the English curriculum of our high school if it had already been posted. If not, our mother would have provided copies.

Finally, in honor of Christian beliefs and the diversity of beliefs, Acts 2 says:
Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven
staying in Jerusalem.
At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd,
but they were confused
because each one heard them speaking in his own language.
They were astounded, and in amazement they asked,
“Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans?
Then how does each of us hear them in his native language?
We are Parthians, Medes, and Elamites,
inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene,
as well as travelers from Rome,
both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs,
yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues
of the mighty acts of God.”

64

Right. Because there is no way they would know about homosexuality at all if they did not read and look at the depictions in this particular book. Because homosexuality hasn’t been the front and foremost topic in the news for a year or so or the main event politically in high schools today. (sarcasm) Give me a break.

Anyone alive today who is breathing and not living out off the grid 100 miles from civilization knows everything there is to know, ad nauseum, about this topic.

65

Understanding the customer, the target market, is incredibly important in business. You’re not going to understand that taking only Math, Quant, Accounting, and Finance classes. You also need Marketing, Sociology and/or Psych, and any number of Humanities classes, in order to understand how people think and why they do what they do. Business, properly taught, is not just STEM…

66

Yeah. Let’s see some equivalent reading on both sides of any issue. That’s what we do here anyway, as a matter of course, and have taught ours to do. Always look up the biases of the author and read something on the other side of the issue espoused.

67

It’s really not uncommon for colleges to have a specific book for all freshman to read: http://www.businessinsider.com/summer-reading-books-at-top-colleges-2015-7 The idea is that everyone will read the book and it will spark discussion. These books generally are a bit controversial and always interesting. My son had to read one as an incoming freshman in 2006 and it was a serious graphic novel. I was impressed with the choice and it changed my mind about the genre.

68

“Dykes to Watch For” is the author’s comic strip. It may be very good but not something I would have as required reading for an incoming freshman class.

69

Wow, talk about a straw man argument. I said these students have nothing to gain from this particular book, but you somehow concluded that I meant “literature of whatever sort”. Classic straw man argument. Not even worth responding to. Btw this book is not “literature”, it’s nothing but self-absorbed, whiny trash. To call it “literature” is an insult to the many literary greats of the past and present.

“Business” is a broad term. Someone who is running a tech startup or working as a financial analyst/CEO have no time for this kind of self-absorbed trash, same goes for most business owners except those who market specifically to the LGBT community. Do LGBT people somehow use AppleWatch or iPhone differently? Do they somehow need different features in their car? Do they need different coffeemakers? Eat different types of food? If not why should any ordinary business need to understand them specifically? Someone who plans to work in human resource on the other hand, is probably a LibArt major where such modern “literature” of self-absorption might come in handy, in case a potential recruit happens to be LGBT and the HR person feels the need to be “culturally sensitive”, but then don’t LGBT people just want to be treated like everyone else anyway? So why the need to be treated as a separate entity?

70

You say the book is not “literature”. Many reputable sources disagree. This wasn’t some “fly by night” bit of fluff.

From Wikipedia: "Several publications listed Fun Home as one of the best books of 2006, including The New York Times, Amazon.com, The Times of London, New York magazine and Publishers Weekly, which ranked it as the best comic book of 2006.[92][93][94][95][96][97] Salon.com named Fun Home the best nonfiction debut of 2006, admitting that they were fudging the definition of “debut” and saying, “Fun Home shimmers with regret, compassion, annoyance, frustration, pity and love—usually all at the same time and never without a pervasive, deeply literary irony about the near-impossible task of staying true to yourself, and to the people who made you who you are.”[98] Entertainment Weekly called it the best nonfiction book of the year, and Time named Fun Home the best book of 2006, describing it as “the unlikeliest literary success of 2006” and “a masterpiece about two people who live in the same house but different worlds, and their mysterious debts to each other.”[99][100]

Fun Home was a finalist for the 2006 National Book Critics Circle Award, in the memoir/autobiography category.[101][102] In 2007, Fun Home won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comic Book, the Stonewall Book Award for non-fiction, the Publishing Triangle-Judy Grahn Nonfiction Award, and the Lambda Literary Award in the “Lesbian Memoir and Biography” category.[103][104][105][106] Fun Home was nominated for the 2007 Eisner Awards in two categories, Best Reality-Based Work and Best Graphic Album, and Bechdel was nominated as Best Writer/Artist.[107] Fun Home won the Eisner for Best Reality-Based Work.[9] In 2008, Entertainment Weekly placed Fun Home at #68 in its list of “New Classics” (defined as “the 100 best books from 1983 to 2008”).[108] The Guardian included Fun Home in its series “1000 novels everyone must read”, noting its “beautifully rendered” details.[109]

In 2009, Fun Home was listed as one of the best books of the previous decade by The Times of London, Entertainment Weekly and Salon.com, and as one of the best comic books of the decade by The Onion’s A.V. Club.[8][110]"

71

The faculty at most institutions are overwhelmingly liberal. There is no disputing this. Anyone who values diversity of thought and the free exchange of ideas and opinions should be rightfully concerned about this, since they in this context get to define for us what is “literature” and what isn’t.

I would expect that many in this thread who are masquerading as champions of anti-censorship didn’t experience equivalent outrage about the protest against Condoleezza Rice making a commencement speech at Rutgers or Ayaan Hirsi Ali getting her honorary degree from Brandeis.

72

All these “reputable sources” you listed, i.e. most of the publishing world of today, is dominated by the liberal left. Of course they would embrace this whiney trash as “literature”. Liberals perfected the art of self-absorption.

Some people also think modern art is art. I think modern art is for people who can’t paint who still want to call themselves artists.

i.e. Pundits be damned. I prefer to think for myself. AFAIC, this self-absorbed, whiney trash is not literature.

73

I suppose if you read the book you could express your “this is whiney trash” perspective in class. But if you don’t, all you can say is “this looks like whiney trash so I didn’t read it”. Somewhat less compelling.

74

My general rule is that controversial books are worth reading. A book, whose mere reputation, riles up so many parents on a college board must be really worth reading. I would guess that will make most students more interested. My few nieces and nephews who had their reading judiciously censored for the tender ages always managed to surreptitiously read those books when they visited me. And they really weren’t big readers.

75

cmsjmt, have you read the book? I’m curious. You seem to know an awful lot about it so I am sure you’ve read it, right?

I just find this whole story downright sad. Students who are smart enough to get into a great college, presumably to get a wonderful education. Yet before they even arrive, they are balking at learning something new, something different, something that they clearly have not been exposed to in their young lives. How sad is that. Isn’t the goal of a great education to challenge one’s experiences and beliefs? Perhaps the prof who heads that particular class should arrange for a trip to NY to see the stage version of Fun Home which is a HUGE hit and which won several Tonys including the top award for Best Musical. Better yet, perhaps an invitation to Alison Bechdel and Michael Cerveris to visit Duke for a master class.

76

FYI, being accepting of (or at least not openly hostile toward) diversity of thought and beliefs (including LGBT) is a large part of the current business culture and will only increase in the future.

77

“PG-- The purpose of art and the following discussion is non-threatening and pretty much non-political.”

Seriously? Whoa. Too much time learning accounting, not enough time in art history class.

The purpose of art can absolutely be provocative (I don’t mean sexually, I mean in the sense of provoking thought, wonder, discomfort) and can absolutely be political in nature. Certainly religious in nature - much of the world’s finest art is religious in nature!

Can you imagine if (say) non-Christian students refused to study the Sistine Chapel or the Pieta in art history class?

78

“I would expect that many in this thread who are masquerading as champions of anti-censorship didn’t experience equivalent outrage about the protest against Condoleezza Rice making a commencement speech at Rutgers or Ayaan Hirsi Ali getting her honorary degree from Brandeis.”

You’d be wrong. I absolutely thought it was wrong / disgraceful / whatever to protest Condoleezza Rice making a commencement speech. I think there is zero excuse for not respectfully listening to such an accomplished woman as Ms. Rice give a speech, no matter what one’s personal political views might be or whether one agreed with her actions as Sec of State. I know less about the other situation, so I don’t wish to comment on it. But I’ve been very upfront on CC that I find this “protect me from a speaker I might disagree with” absolutely ridiculous and not at all keeping with the concept of higher education…

79

"Do LGBT people somehow use AppleWatch or iPhone differently? Do they somehow need different features in their car? Do they need different coffeemakers? Eat different types of food? If not why should any ordinary business need to understand them specifically? "

ROFL! I’m in marketing research for a career and my clients absolutely have need to understand these types of things, as well as media choices.

80

I agree 100% with PG. Listen and learn, or comment afterward, or whatever, but don’t protest the existence of a speaker on campus you disagree with. Rude and ignorant.