Bloom's Use Of The Counterculture Analysis

Classical education or the pursuit of the good, is under vicious assault by an unthinking liberalism bent on asserting dogmas treacherous to the flourishing university. Relativism is usurping intellectual discourse; absolute ideals are functionally rendered meaningless. Through this collection of essays, Bloom depicts the tragic tale whereby an impassioned, demagogic counterculture is sweeping the youth at American universities by dictating to them that intellectual exchange is at the mercy of progress. By abandoning the notion of truth altogether, this counterculture is subjecting itself to self-refutation, as it misunderstands the characteristic of exclusivity for any and all truth claims. In addition, the cultivation of virtue is displaced …show more content…
Affirmative action, the noble attempt to promote equality and to erase any distinctions between Blacks and Whites, has brought many black students to university ill-equipped and unprepared to bear the rigors and challenges of a competitive academic environment. Consequently, many students have been forced to drop out or leave without any considerable measures of gain. Aside from questions of merit, Bloom discusses how many black students have not been able to seamlessly blend with other white students. Although the notion of equality weighs heavy on the consciences of white students, they are unable to ameliorate their burden with the reality of an organic, integrated community. However, Bloom doesn’t attribute this to a moral blemish of white students per se. In reaction, many black university students sought to separate themselves through Black-only centers and courses—something akin to protective nuclei—to shield themselves from threatening, external actors or systems. In other words, he argues that poorly conceived conceptions of race have contaminated the purpose of universities by permitting groups to explore exclusive, particular experiences separate from the heartbeat of the