The Decline of Privilege: The Modernization of Oxford University by Joseph Soares

by Joseph A. Soares

This book studies Oxford University's transformation - and the political hazards for academics that ensued - when, after World War II, it changed from a private liberal-arts club with aristocratic pretensions into a state university heavily committed to the natural sciences, with a middle-class constituency and a meritocratic ethos. Despite these changes, the author shows that Oxford has not been able to elude its long-standing Brideshead Revisited reputation. This antiquated image became a source of difficulties when the Labour Party in the 1960's sought to expand educational opportunities to promote social justice. In the 1980's the University again came under attack, this time for its supposedly anti-industrial ethos, as Margaret Thatcher's Conservative Party attempted to reverse Britain's economic decline.

Genres: Education

Mass Market Paperback

First published June 1, 1999