Saturday, December 11, 2010
Section Six
This section opens with the author elaborating on the story Rip Van Winkle, making the point that the story is filled with political background. Rip goes to sleep one person, and awakes in a world where he is participating in the outcomes of his life. This is a very different world for him, and he is uncomfortable with the new realization that he is indeed a participant and is expected to make decisions. Individual freedom in our country gives us the right to participate, or not. It is our choice whether we vote, etc. Knowledgable people have a moral sense to do the right thing. It is what keeps our country great, and keeps people involved. The author points out that there is no real concrete profit to being involved in the country's affairs. The author seems to infer that students today do argue and "activate" but without the needed background to back up their arguments. They basically have no knowledge background to solidify their postitions. He states that the "intellectual future of the United States looks dim." This generation of students don't look to the past for guidance and don't care to do their homework and learn from the past. "...they will be remembered as the fortunate ones who were unworthy of the privileges they inherited."
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The book's conclusion with the summary of “Rip Van Winkle” and a discussion of how today’s kids, “The Dumbest Generation,” are sleeping through the changes that are taking place caught my attention in a way I didn't expect. Today’s youth will be unprepared, as was Rip, to deal with what has happened when they finally wake up to a culture that has changed, and they don’t know why. Concern exists that if Democratic action doesn’t “unfold in the shadow of civic ideals” that it will “descend entirely into cheap self interest.” (Page 211) Bauerlein states that, “The more people know, the more they argue” (Page 217) and the parallel to Rip Van Winkle suggests that today’s youth are represented by Rip himself. He had slept for 20 years not having a clue what was going on. Today’s youth as well have no clue about happenings outside of their immediate social circles. They have slept through movements of culture and historical events because they only concern themselves with their peers and events of the moment. Sure, the author argues that some rare intellectuals will still deliberate in their own groups, but he states that this does them no good. Additionally, unlike activist groups of the past, today’s political and special interest groups agree too much with themselves. There is no need to argue, to debate, they merely unite by opposing a common foe. Bauerlein argues that “if you ignore the traditions that ground and ennoble our society, you are an incomplete person and a negligent citizen.” (Page 233)
ReplyDeleteI very much want my students to be successful contributors to society. I realize that I can only do so much, but I do try. I worry that my students really will, as Bauerlein suggests, be “recalled as the generation that lost the great American heritage, forever.” (Page 236) I wonder as a teacher how I can prevent that title from becoming a reality, or if I even can.
When I first started to read this book like everyone else in our blog I was depressed and that has not changed with the conclusion of the book. Bauerlein has made it clear that the younger generation, “may even be recalled as the generation that lost that great American heritage, forever.” (Pg 236). While watching the nightly news I hear how American students are falling behind in reading, math, and science. I ask myself what is it going to take to make administrators, teachers, and parents understand that we have to hold students accountable to the effort they put into education.
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