Anxious Intellects: Academic Professionals, Public Intellectuals, and Enlightenment Values

233 Pages·2000·1.4 MB·English

by  John Michael

ANXIOUS INTELLECTS

ANX-
AIcademic POrofessionals, Public IntUellectuals, and EnlighteSnment Values
J O H N M I C H A E L
INTEL-
DUKE UNIVERSITY PRESS Durham and London 2000
LECTS
©DukeUniversityPress
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FOR SHARON

CONTENTS
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction:FundamentalConfusion 
PARTONE
CulturalAuthority,EnlightenmentTraditions,andProfessionalAnxiety
 Publicity:BlackIntellectualsasInorganicRepresentatives 
 Pedagogy:EnlightenedInstructionasOppressiveDiscipline 
 Community:PragmatismasaProfessionofAnxiety 
 Culture:WesternTraditionsandIntellectualTreason 
PARTTWO
ProjectedIdentities,UniversalIllusions,andDemocraticDiscourse
 TheCritic:CulturalStudiesandAdorno’sGhost 
 TheScientist:DisembodiedIntellectandPopularUtopias 
 TheProfessional:ScienceWarsandInterdisciplinaryStudies 
Conclusion:TatteredMaps 
Notes 
Bibliography 
Index 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ThisbookhaslittledirectlytodowithEasternEurope,butIbeganthink-
ing seriously about what intellectuals in democratic societies could and
couldnotbeexpectedtododuringayear,fromto,thatIspent
as a Fulbright scholar in the Instytut Anglistyki, Uniwersytet Warszaw-
ski, in Poland. I would like to thank the Fulbright Foundation and the
staff of the English Institute, especially Agatha Preis Smith, for making
my stay in Poland during this difficult time productive. I would also like
to thank Adam Michnik, Mira Marody, Stefan Marody, Jan Gross, Elena
Gross,DavidOst,andTadeuszKowalikfordiscussingtherapidtransfor-
mations of Polish society and their impact on intellectuals’ role in that
society. If not for Ewa Hauser’s consuming passion for things Polish, I
wouldneverhavegonetoPolandatall.
The Universityof Rochesteroffered me research support and time off
while working on early and later versions of this manuscript. I would
especiallyliketothankthegreatstaff intheEnglishDepartment,Nancy
Hall,RosemarieHattman,PatriciaNeal,LucyPeck,KateWalsh,andCindy
Warner,forthecountlessactsof kindnessandefficiencythathavemade
myscholarlyandprofessionallifepossibleatalloverthelastfewyears.
Many friends and colleagues have discussed these ideas and read vari-
ous drafts of portions of the book as it evolved. I would like to thank
MichaelLevine(monplusquefrère),FrankShuffelton,JonathanBaldo,Anita
Levy,DeborahGrayson,MorrisEaves,BetteLondon,ThomasHahn,Sasha
Torres, Lynne Joyrich, Paul Smith, Paul Piccone (who will disagree with
everythingI’vewritten),RandallHalle,ThomasDiPiero(whoalsokeptme
laughing),DavidTamarin(whohaslongbeenmymodelofintellectualand
personalintegrity),SarahHigley,andLisaCartwrightfortheirinterestand
attention.MohammedBamyehofferedmedetailedcommentsonforeign
policyandpostcolonialpolitics.RosemaryKegltookontheextraordinary
choreofreadingthefirstdraftoftheentiremanuscriptandmakingade-