Deresiewicz Argument Analysis

Deresiewicz reveals a problem that “only the commercial purpose now survives as a recognized value” (26). Students are progressively choosing majors that are more practical for job hunting and paying off debt. There are less people who want major in core subjects like literature, mathematics, or a science. “A Princeton student literally made this argument to me: If the market is incentivizing me to go to Wall Street, he said, then who am I to argue?” (32). The Princeton student is sadly correct; the pressure for all college students to get a high paying job right after graduation is at an all time high. The increasing compete for jobs leaves students worrying about internships and job-focused extracurricular activities. Deresiewicz explains
that students aren’t learning anymore because “business, broadly speaking, does not require you to be as smart as possible or to think as hard as possible” (30). Society’s compulsion for a business aspect is leaving professors unhappy and students with just people skills.