Eric: Being generally as iconoclastic as the next guy;), I agree that authority must be resisted; however, if we think we are going to change those structures from the underside we are deluded. There are enough people co-opted into the system--heck, even junior faculty who are better at scholarly scrounging than the classroom scrum--that inertia will not be overcome. Jim's suggestion of choosing more modest routes to open our exchanges of ideas is a good one, but the issue is still about publishing rather than about teaching. btw, has anyone seen Robert Scholes new book _The Rise and Fall of English: Reconstructing English as a Discipline_? I saw the review in the New York Times (MArch ninth) and it looks like it might be a good one to stir up the hornet's nest (and relevant to this discussion). From the review, Scholes point is that we need to de-emphasize teaching literature as literature, elevate teaching of writing, and merge the two into a useful discipline. He regards English studies as irrelevant because it prepares students for a life of contemplation only lived by English Teachers. (I think he needs to look at the lives of any teacher; contemplation? ha). anyway, I'd love to hear other reviews. Rob Irish