James Carey, the American University, and the General Moral and Intellectual Point of View

Abstract

The author describes how James Carey viewed and then judged the American university, its curriculum, and the forms of scholarship it rewards. Carey believed that the university had ceased to be an autonomous institution and, following the lead of the Canadian theorist Harold Innis, argued that its culture had been penetrated by interests representing the state, corporate commitments, and the professions. He said the modern curriculum fosters the formation of experts rather than citizens. The essay concludes with an analysis of how Carey sought to reconnect university education to democratic life and to what he called the “general moral and intellectual point of view.”