Vor, Itt, Won 5 TSKANDALON™ March 10,1565
EDITORIAL: An Essay on Academic Freedom,
University Power, and the Power of the President
Some say academic freedom doesn't exist, Others say it shouldn't. A few
so define it as to make it meaningless, And one or two would even say we have
never had it on this campus, Nationally, however, the question of academic
freedom was last raised at the University of California at Berkeley, We should
er the questions raised there in order to determine the rights
and responsibilities of students within an academically free university, the
position of the President, and the implications of such considerations,
The Berkeley Free Speech Movement began last September but did wot gain
widespread national recognition or widespread, dedicated support from its own
student body until November 2 when the Berkeley administration acted to bring
charges against a number of individuals who had taken part in certain protests
against the administrative rulings prohibiting the use of university property
for the purpose of advocating various social protest activities (except those
approved by the administration, such as canvassing against Propo on 2, or
taking part in pre-election political activities). The students r: ghtfully
pointed out that the action was in direct violation of a rather explicitly
stated agreement between the FSM and the university, which had been signed by
President Kerr only short weeks earlier,
But the issues at Berkeley go much deeper than the anger certain students
felt toward certain administrators. They center over the concept of a university
and the concept of freedom within that university. Berkeley acted to suppress
"advocacy," and students responded with an unprecedented attack upon the whole
institutional structure--against the "multiversity," Specifically, students
charged that they had been alienated from the university community. In order
to fully understand this term, "alienation, n (which has been as widely used on
the Berkeley campus as "apathy" on ours) it is first necessary to view the
university within the context of academic freedom,
What Is Academic Freedom? li
Traditionally, academic freedom has centered around three areas: extending
the boundaries of knowledge, re-examining and re-evaluating old concepts in the
Light of new ones, and the communication of the resultant ideas with other members
of the academic community and the community at large, The freedom of individuals
to act in these areas must not be abridged, For it is only by the constant
challenging of old ideas and concepts that they continue to glow with the light
of truth; when the freedom to pursue new ideas and new viewpoints to their logical
conclusion is abridged, or when the communication of these ideas is in some way
limited, academic freedom becomes a historical figment and the most sparkling
truth, whether it be of religion, psychology, or science, becomes no better than
the dullest dogma, It should be cbvious, then, that academic freedom is not an
end in itself, but an indispensable instrument leading to the provocation of
thought.
It was in the last area that the students felt their freedom was being
abridged: communication. Intellectual activity, and thought itself, they
contended, are meaningless if students and faculty are to be prohibited fram
expressing their convictions to the university comunity or advocati. 1g them
without. It is a mistake, they said, to suppose that political issues can be
separated from educational ones; a ite to think intellectual activity can
be valid without a corresponding attempt to put beliefs into practice. The
attempt of the Berkeley administration to put restraints upon certain kinds of
speech, faculty members stated in a brief submitted to the court trying approxi-
mately 800 students for sit-in activities at Berkeley, had been an un»Ccnustitutiona).
ones; and we agree,
The university administration finally backed down to the point where, it
said, it would allow all kinds of advocacy except that leading to illegal actions.
The reason students found this unacceptable seems to us sound; for nowhere was
the administration's position made clear as to what would constitute "illegal"
activity. Regarding the advocacy of sit-ins, for example--in recent months,
there have been a great many court judgments rendexing previous adverse decisions
null and void,
Does the university have a right to decide when the courts can't make up
their minds? Students claim it is up to the courts to decide whether a speeeh
made on or off campus has led to ‘illegal activity. And it is up to the courts
EDITORIAL, cont'd, ca a
it should be noted,
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are on the campus.)
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fran South American universities where st
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32
REVIEW-=MARY POPPINS
It was truly unnecessary to advertise that Mary Poppins came from the
Walt Disney assembly line, This film could have graduated only from the same
school which produced such "too-too-nice-for-words" features as The Three Lives
of Thomasina, Pollyanna, Summer Magic, etc, And, as usual, this "good-for-ages
8-80" sentimentality gets a bit heavy at times,
There are, however, several points on the asset side of the ledger, although
this reviewer isn't positive Poppins truly deserved all thirteen Academy Award
nominations it received.
One outstanding aspect of the film is the total performance turned in by
the supporting players. David Tomlinson (Tom Jones) is magnificent as the too-
cold-hearted, villainous father typical of a Disney production, Mr, Tomlinson's
handling of the bumbling "bad-guy" (George Banks) is a joy to the eye and (at
times) ears
_ Glynis Johns, as Winifred Banks, wife of George and mether of the twe
children (Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber), who are, with Mary Poppins, the
central characters, is almost perfect as the slightly scatter-brained political
crusader ("Votes fer Women") and part-time homemaker.
Other than the two maids, Hermoine Baddeley (The UnsinkabLe Molly Brown)
and Reta Shaw (The Pajama Game), the remainder of the veteran cast is involved
2m cameo-like ro.
Cathedral feeding the pigeons; the whole scene is done in a very well handled
dream-like sequence, as Mary Poppins serenades the two precocious offspring with
"Tuppence a Bag," ‘
__ Arthur Malet appears as the son of the president of the bank which employs,
fires, and re-hires Mr, Barks, Malet is suitably artificial, condescending, and
Pompous ¢
__ The credit for the generally high quality performances goes, ¢o same great
extent, to director Robert Stevenson (The Absent-Minded Professor). Mr. Steven~
son has been nominated for Best Director of 196k, and rightfully so. The episodes
Guth ih indeed they are) follow in succession with as much logic as is necessary
aa such.a fantasy, The sceresare, in most cases, well-handled, though often too
Ong»
__, Perhaps the biggest asset which the film can claim is the happy (and bene—
ficial) marriage of Stevenson's direction and Edward Coleman's photographye ‘The
camera work can bestbe termed beautiful, particularly in such scenes as the
silhouette dance of the chimey sweeps, the London skyline (seen from above),
and the em-like seqnence already mentioned,
_. "Fun from ceginning to end" easily describes the rather extended piece of
film devoted to the combination of animated and real. re characters, This
sec not only fun, but also the technical high point of the film, and
could easily be thought of as one of Disney's all-time best cinemoments. Ani-
mation Director Hamilton S, Luske deserves ringing applause for his «¢ PbS ¢
_ Included in this eniwation-rcal-life section is a sequence involving four
penguin-waiters, with one particular goof-off in the group. This scene is pure
fun and enjoyable all the way. 4
This is followed by a rather ove1—cxtended (almost to the point of "Holdl
enough") bit of business involving a carousel and a fox hunt (complete with
Trish-br ogue fox), and a horse race, which Miss Poppins wins astride her carousel
steed. ‘i
The screenplay, by Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi (Son of Flubber), is perhaps
one cut above the usual Disney script, but only one, The best lines, perhaps
paradoxically, are given to the kids, which they toss off with an aplomb which
is completely disarming. The dialogue is heavy-handed in spots, such as when
Dick Van Dyke admonishes the children to attempt to understand their father.
The total script is almost infantile, yet it includes enough solid, intelligent
lines as to make the author of the ovieiunl Peppius stories, P, L. Travers,
(almost) regret her delaylug trav 1939 to 1961 to sell the film rights to the
Disney stables--ah--studios. i
(continued, page ))
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-M. E. Grenander
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ES ce or short eee are oe as w cr as written resp
published in Skandalon, Work may be subwitted to Guy McBride, ‘Edi
Rev, Frank Snow, Campus Minister.
