The Leaning Tower - McNeill, Charles

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Résumé :
In the sociology department at a southern university in the US, there lie several major groups of personality types. Their unique foibles and the activities they engage in all point to pitfalls endemic to such contexts. The consequences of these dynamics include unanticipated destructive impacts on the department, faculty, and university as a whole. Central to this drama are Alistair and his friend Alex, observers on the sidelines, troubled witnesses to their colleagues who are on stage, acting out their routines with blind passion and disregarding the warning signs of ruinous consequences surrounding them. Struggling to remain sane in this disastrous swamp, the two friends attempt to warn their colleagues of the dangers ahead but with little success. The resulting devastation is a complete surprise to everyone involved. The Leaning Tower paints a satirical portrait of academics and the behavior of those who work behind the scenes.

Biographie:
teaching and research may open vistas to new worlds of awareness and discovery. However, academic politics often tend to be highly ideological, blind, and distorted. In the latter case, a variety of ideological groups typically emerge within these relatively isolated academic systems to compete with one another for resources and dominance, often with destructive consequences. The Leaning Tower offers a fictional account of these social dynamics, including their disastrous outcomes. The novella is intended to provide relevant insight and a warning of potential dangers born from toxic behavior in the workplace....

Sommaire:
Charles McNeill, educated and trained in a number of different countries, has spent the majority of his career in various parts of the United States. He has taught at both high school and college levels, carrying out research primarily in the latter context. The college world can be both insightful and blinding...