<p>The book is being discussed in the athletes thread, but i thought I would pull it out for further discussion since it in itself is a worthwhile topic. Many have compared the book's setting, "Dupont University," to Duke. One poster stated that the author explicitly denied this comparison, while another asserted that the author modeled it after Duke and Stanford, having interviewed students at UNC, U Florida, UPENN and U Chic as well. </p>
<p>If, in fact, I am Charlottle Simmons is modeled after Duke, as the title of the fictional university strongly implies, the book can be interpreted as a sharp criticism of Duke as a superficial, elitist institution, among many things. </p>
<p>Dukies, what's the verdict? Is Dupont worth comparing to Duke, and if so, where does that leave us?</p>
<p>Well, I've only read the Wiki article, but there's no mistaking the similarities between Dupont and Duke. A lot of the criticisms aren't new, either. We hear about these same concerns (ESPECIALLY hook up culture) all the time.</p>
<p>It is definitely modeled after Duke, if you read the book, it heavily discusses Dupont's obsession with basketball and all athletics, its beautiful Gothic architecture, and the tall library tower that seems strikingly similar to the Duke Chapel tower. There are many criticisms that the author addresses such as the special, unfair treatment of athletes and the heavy influence of alcohol, sex, and frats. Unfortunately, I have no experience at Duke to know if any of it is true, but the setting and emphasis on athletics seems to fit Duke perfectly.</p>
<p>Mondo (My explanation might be completely useless because I am in a completely different situation than you):</p>
<p>As a prospective student, i had some free time to read it and did so this summer. I had heard it was about "a poor girl going to Duke and the shocking lifestyle she encounters" and just wanted to read it as Duke is my overwhelming #1 choice if i could get in. Ya know, kinda in the phase of infatuation with all things Duke and wanting to get to know more about social life at the D.</p>
<p>I thought it might be kind of "girly" with the title and the premise of a little southern good girl going away to school but it was ok i guess. I realize it is complete FICTION and didn't use it as a guide to life at duke or anything. Most of the description in the book i would assume is slightly exagerated tales of how Duke life really is and probably not the norm/how everyone acts. (but i have no basis to judge, because i'm still in HS lol)</p>
<p>I enjoyed reading it because it was about Duke, a school 40 minutes from my house and the school I have always wanted to go to. I viewed it as a kind of in-depth look on the sterotype i hear all the time from people in NC: "Duke is full of rich, white kids that may be crazy smart, but have everything handed to them and dont care about anything but partying."</p>
<p>So basically, to me, it was interesting because of my desire to go to the school that the book is about and wanting to learn more about how the school's social life operates and is perceived by others. It was NOT a book that i read and felt like I had gained insight that made me more worldly or better equipped to take on any new task (incl. college life). So if you are already a student at Duke, you could glance through it to look at the sterotypes and similarities/differences I guess, but you probably already know the common perceptions and how life really is. So in my opinion, it would probably be a waste of time.</p>
<p>Yes, it's modeled after Duke, but it's kind of like people depicted in political cartoons. You can recognize their features, but they are greatly exaggerated. It's fiction; an accurate depiction of frosh life at Duke wouldn't sell many books.</p>
<p>read the reviews. The book was a failure on its merits as a satire unlike the brilliant Bonfire of the Vanities, and I love Tom Wolfe's contributions to social critique of our age. His daughter went to Duke btw. He obviously did use the stereotypes at Duke in a very broad manner, and no one would deny that the broad outlines can be found at Duke or any college with a division one sports life.</p>
<p>I have to say that my son's friends at Duke are hugely ethical, idealist and hard working people who traveled to Durham from far far away for an intense learning opportunity. Also, many of the student athletes my son knows are complete health nuts and also brilliant students. I certainly asked him about this novel and it was in our house when he was a freshman...he and I both read a few hundred pages of the bloated prose...and found a few things to be funny and accurate..but basically it doesn't really tell the story of the Duke students we know at all. I guess if you havea daughter..there was certainly some room for a pre college discussion about sexual activity at college and the risk of exploitation...ditto for boys re sex and alcohol..but what college doesn't attempt to address this with freshmen of both sexes from orientation day one? There were a few people who gave Wolfe a hard time for his out of touch reference to Britney Spears in relation to Duke college students..I recall that trivial criticism from the reviews....and a sense that he might have been out of touch with where their social lives really were when he wrote that book...</p>
<p>Perhaps it is quite fair game for Wolfe to talk a lot about binge drinking parties and risks of all kinds that result for college coeds of either sex...I certainly made my parental attempt to discuss this with my kids before they left home.</p>
<p>I am not sure what he accomplished in this book. I also read the book he wrote called A Man in Full about the pursuit of happiness in Atlanta, a city where I have lived four times. Again, he honed in on some great broad satirical outlines of the personalities making a run in the New South and its own contemporary robber barons...but it was also something of a flop as a read.<br>
Personally, I am a Wolfe fan...so I would like to give him praise...he and John Updike have exchanged frosty New Yorker editorials...as Updike has not viewed his work as successful for a long time.</p>
<p>My son's favorite things freshman year were pretty wholesome..no kidding. The dorms on East are very homey and each dorm has a lot of dorm pride...silly competitions and he joined a coed team of a silly easy sport just for kicks to meet people in his dorm...and he immersed himself in FOCUS in a huge way intellectually, with his teachers and with friends he made and has kept since then from that bonding experience. I am sure he has told me zip about rushing frat parties...but you will find that Duke students also have very strong individual talents of various strains and are quite interesting academically...not like each other..all unique.</p>