I’M BIASED

But my old professor Harvey C. Mansfield has written a pellucid piece defending his war on grade inflation – which he now conducts with the only weapon at his disposal, irony – in, of all places, the Chronicle of Higher Education. I remember his stern admonitions and sometimes opaque utterances that he encouraged his students to unravel. That’s why, of all my teachers, I remember him most vividly. He had – how can I put this? – authority. Students and children love authority. And they love to be challenged. Harvey rightly says that “there is something inappropriate — almost sick — in the spectacle of mature adults showering young people with unbelievable praise.” And making a full 50 percent of Harvard grades A or A- is, indeed, sick. Why would anyone bother to strive for excellence – real excellence – when its symbol, a Harvard A, is all but guaranteed? Reading this piece, I realized for the first time what a true scandal this is; and why a great deal of our cultural rot is related to it.