www.nysoclib.org/notes/2012/wh...
Two of the city's leading critical thinkers discuss the legacy of Lionel Trilling and the impact of his era of thought on today's world of higher education.
Lionel Trilling, America's preeminent literary critic at his death in 1975, is often seen as a relic of a vanished era in which literary ideas seemed central to the intellectual life of the country. To the contrary, Why Trilling Matters demonstrates how Trilling's original and moving work lives on as an inspiring example of a mind creating itself through its encounters with texts. It also addresses today's concerns about the decline of literature, reading, and the book, finding that Trilling has more to teach us than ever before.
In College, Andrew Delbanco offers a trenchant defense of a broadly humanistic education, currently in danger from the commercialization of the college experience and its focus on preprofessional credentials. Putting the institution in historical context and acknowledging the challenges colleges face today, he describes their ongoing strengths in the era of globalization.
Adam Kirsch is a senior editor of New Republic and a columnist for Tablet magazine. He is the author of several books of poetry and criticism.
Andrew Delbanco is the Director of American Studies at Columbia University. His many books include Melville: His World and Work, which won the Lionel Trilling Award. He received the 2011 National Humanities Medal from President Obama.