Academic Governance

and Fiction

Introduction:
Viewing the faculty governance in higher
education through a unique lens- the college

novel. The novel is a useful lense by which

uncover some of the complexities inherent in
faculty decision making and governance.

The Role of the Novel:

Novels may provide unique perspective
about academe by illustrating the relationship
between academe and the general public, and
by

contributing

additional framework.

discourse

to

pursue

The Role of the Novel:

How does the general public arrive at an
image of higher education? One way is through
reading novels. Fiction often reaches a much
larger roles in peoples conceptions of colleges
and universities. How accurate is a novels
portrayal of reality? Novels provide even a
partial view of reality.

The Dialectic
The use of dialectic in novels is to uncover or more
fully portraying the role of governance in higher
education or mutually dependent exchange of information.
The latter definition, in turn, makes an assumption that
the true portrayal of academe lies in the interrelatedness

of these frames, a dialogue between novels and academe

is one that us both sensible and revealing. The use of
novels in this manner is the creation of a new lens by

which to conduct a complex analysis.

 Organizations are a metaphor, or manifestation of a living

organism,

with

the

same

conscious

and

unconscious

Conceptual
processes,
imagesFramework
and dysfunction of a person. They

project their unconscious fears, hopes, and anxieties onto

was the paradigm of an organization.

their members who then internalize and identify with the

Organizations are ultimately created and

images the organization has created of itself. People within

sustained
by not
conscious
and
unconscious
organization
are trapped
only by their
individual
psychic
prisons, processesbut also by the
prison
the collective
psyche
people
canof become
imprisoned

created in
by the
or organization
confined. by

the images, ideas,

thoughts, and actions to which these

processes give rise. (Morgan)

Three Major Themes in

College Novels
1. The Curriculum
2. Academic Freedom
3. Tenure

The Curriculum:
Curriculum - derives from the Latin currere
meaning to run; the course of the race
This implies that one of the functions of a
curriculum is to provide a template or design
which enables learning to take place.

(Wikipedia)

The Curriculum:
Many decisions by faculty are entirely the
result of personal issues with the curriculum
providing the arena by which can be played
out.

Academic Freedom
Academic
belief that
the freedom
Academicfreedomis
freedom the
is always
protected,
and

of inquiry by faculty members is essential to the mission

even held on high regard, so long as it does not

of the academy as well as the principles ofacademia, and

pose any real danger to the administration. Real

that

scholars

should

have

freedom

to

teach

or

danger include administrative disputes with

communicate ideas or facts (including those that are

governing boards
or donors,
or conflicts
inconvenient
to external
political
groups orthat
to
threaten without
the image
or reputation
of the
authorities)
being targeted
for repression,
job
loss,
or imprisonment.
institution.

(Meriam Webster dictionary)

Tenure:
Tenure lays
is translatable
principally as
Tenure
no claim whatsoever
to aa
Tenure is fundamentally valuable to the
statement as
of formal assurance
guarantee
of a statement
lifetime employment.
Tenure
academy and is considered a reasonable
that hereafter
the no
individuals
provides
only that
person, professional
continuously
response to the highly specialized nature of
security asand
academic faculty
freedom
will not
be
retained
a full-timed
member
beyond
academic work and the long training period.
in question
due
aplaced
specified
lengthywithout
periodfull
ofacademic
probationary
process.may thereafter be dismissed without
service,
Tenure
is
a
guarantee
of
life
adequate cause.
employment.

Discussion
Organizations are fundamentally governed by
conscious and unconscious processes, with the notion

that people can actually be imprisoned in or confined

by the images, ideas, thoughts, and actions to which
these processes give rise.(Morgan)
Organization

does

not

necessarily

exist

to

accomplish a tangible, worthwhile task but to give shape

and substance to human existence.

Psychic Prisons and

Sexuality
Morgan
(1997)
explored
ways inbetween
which
According
to Morgan,
Thisthe
conflict
issues
surrounding
sexuality
within
organization
and sexuality
shouldcan
comesurface
as no surprise,
fororganization
mastery and control
of the body
is fundamental
for
an
and influence
the
ways in which
control over social and political life. The rise of formal
decisions
are made. Two aspects or repressed
organization and the routinization of the human body.

sexuality within organizations will be discussed;

Faculty actually have a great deal of power within

bureaucracy

and

repressed

sexuality,

and

the bureaucracy, especially that faculty with tenure.

patriarchal dominance.

Dependency and Defense

Mechanisms
It is
important
to understand
themetaphor
role that
Money
operates
most
obviously as
personal
and desires
playpositional
in regard to
for issues
prestige,
power and
decision
strength.making (practically or fairness). Many
decisions involve the interplay of defense
Major factor in decision making
mechanisms and dependency issues within the
psyche.

Egocentrism and Narcissism

The
organization
loves
itself when
it is liberal,
Morgan
described
narcissistic
organizations
Most organizations fundamentally operate onasa
free
and
spontaneous.
interacting
withprincipleprojections
of by
themselves
and
single
underlying
to reproduce
themselves
at
Egocentric
decisions
made
faculty
and
Morgan
explained
that
egocentric
organizations
suggests
that
many
of
the
problems
with
this type act
of
any
cost
(Morgan)
.
Members
of
am
organizations
administrations. Curriculum and instruction
are
those and
organizations
aof
fixed
notionand
of
organizations
are
simply that
a matter
consciously
unconsciously
inhave
order
tocreating
protect
the

presumably a primary focus at any school are

who they are aand sustain
that image.
identity at
any cost.
maintaining
particular
Narcissistic
organization.
routinely ignored and downplayed.

organizations
are in loveby
created,
idealized
image
(Both
are trapped
a avision
ofautopoiesis,
themselves).
Morgan
suggested
awith
theory
called
the

of
themselves.
Like narcissism
this is an
Egocentric
organizations
are in
trapped
by themselves.
arrogance
ability
of organizations
to renew
or individuals,
replicate
extremely
and not bydestructive
self-love. and unfulfilling state of mind.

Conclusion
Most
disturbing
about
the portrayal
of facultys
Faculty
create
images
of themselves

role in decision making and governance in the college

within

the

organizations

as

coping

novel is the manner in which faculty are depicted.

mechanism, and these images then influence

Morgans paradigm of organizations as psychic prisons

the
organization itself. Thus, higher education
seems to provide an accurate framework to organize
is
a microcosm of
but
it is one that
has
characterizations
of society
faculty as
represented
in college
novels. Their
behaviourspath.
and attitudes reflect a
evolved
on a separate
symbiotic relationship with academe.

References: