A very engaging yet deeply frustrating book, Andrew Delbanco’s College tries to offer a grand vision of higher education, but falls into the error of mistaking a niche for the whole.
College is, mostly, a pleasure to read. Delbanco is passionate about his subject, and keenly committed to learning. His account of academic history draws nicely from primary sources, yielding humorous quotes and echoes of the present. Delbanco’s prose is thoughtful and elegant.
His overall claim for a specific form of higher education is also appealing. He envisions small classrooms led by engaging professors, spaces where inquiry and discussion range freely. I agree with the excellence of this vision based on my work as a teacher and from my memories of being a student. Delbanco’s additional claim that colleges can boost citizens’ democratic engagement is one I’m sympathetic to.
However, this vision is so partial and limited as to constitute at best a kind of special pleading. At worst the book is a grossly inaccurate depiction of higher education in reality.
