At a Glance: The Death of Expertise

The Death of Expertise by Tom Nichols
(The Death of Expertise by Tom Nichols)

“These are dangerous times. Never have so many people had so much access to so much knowledge and yet have been so resistant to learning anything” (Tom Nichols).  The Death of Expertise was a bit of a dark but fitting way to end 2020. Nichols’ grapples with the increasingly hostile relationship the public shares with experts.  His observations regarding issues with our current education system particularly resonated with me.  Nichols does appear to overvalue traditional modes of education and elite institutions, which is understandable given his positionality. The book also nicely paralleled many of the cultural observations Elif Shafak put forth in her recent piece How to Stay Sane in an Age of Division.

error: Right click is disabled!