Harvard Grads Leave Without Finishing a Single Book

Even though they might be part of the intellectual elite, Harvard students Could finish their degree without picking up a single work of fiction throughout their tenure at the nation's most ancient institution of higher learning.

Scolding her fellow 25,000 students at the institution founded in 1636, Claire Miller asserts that the university ought to mandate them to read at least one book.

In The Harvard Crimson, the campus newspaper, Ms. Miller has advocated for making an English course mandatory for students, who annually pay over $56,000 (£44,350) in tuition fees.

She posed a query to her colleagues, saying, "Can anyone recall when they last finished reading an entire book?"

For someone planning to concentrate in English, it happened last week for me. However, if you inquire about this with fellow students from different majors, they're more inclined to respond with an indifferent shrug.

Students at Harvard frequently gripe about the reading assignments.

They find any tasks demanding more than 25 pages of writing dull or daunting (unless they're delegating this to ChatGPT). It’s uncommon for us to be tasked with reading an entire book, and even less frequent that these books get fully completed.

‘Blame rests with Harvard’

It was a scathing criticism of the students at a university that has recently been improving. famous for political activism rather than thorough research .

Ms. Miller also points out that the responsibility lies with the university.

“Many expository writing courses do not mandate that students read entire novels. This also applies to numerous classes fulfilling the arts and humanities requirements.”

"Such courses remain highly valuable, yet they cannot substitute for the study of literature .”

She contends that one issue lies in the insufficient reading prerequisites at American high schools.

“However, precisely because of this, Harvard bears the responsibility to its students to reignite their appreciation for literature.”

Research conducted in the US indicates that the most commonly assigned book for Harvard students is "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King Jr.

This item often shows up on the reading lists for students of English literature, political science, history, philosophy, religion, law, social work, theology, sociology, and media and communication studies.

Ms. Miller candidly acknowledges, "I fully understand that numerous individuals do not appreciate reading—understandably so, since mandating a course might not alter this perspective. There’s nothing wrong with disliking reading; similarly, I derive no pleasure from completing three weekly problem sets for my calculus class."

Nonetheless, education isn’t merely about enjoying what you study; requirements provide us with a crucial comprehensive education. By taking this course, more Harvard students could start recognizing the value of both literature and humanities, and possibly they may become inclined to read a book for enjoyment sometime in the future.

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