''God and Man at Yale: The Superstitions of "Academic Freedom"'' is a 1951 book by

William F. Buckley Jr. William Frank Buckley Jr. (born William Francis Buckley; November 24, 1925 – February 27, 2008) was an American conservative writer, public intellectual, political commentator and novelist. Born in New York City, Buckley spoke Spanish as his ...

, based on his undergraduate experiences at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

. Buckley, then aged 25, criticized Yale for forcing

collectivist In sociology, a social organization is a pattern of relationships between and among individuals and groups. Characteristics of social organization can include qualities such as sexual composition, spatiotemporal cohesion, leadership, struct ...

Keynesian Keynesian economics ( ; sometimes Keynesianism, named after British economist John Maynard Keynes) are the various macroeconomic theories and models of how aggregate demand (total spending in the economy) strongly influences economic output an ...

, and

secularist Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...

ideology on students, criticizing several professors by name, arguing that they tried to break down students' religious beliefs through their hostility to religion and that Yale was denying its students any sense of

individualism Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote realizing one's goals and desires, valuing independence and self-reliance, and a ...

by forcing them to embrace the ideas of

liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. ...

. Buckley argued that the Yale charter assigns the authority for oversight of the university to the alumni, and that because most alumni of Yale believed in God, Yale was failing to serve its "masters" by teaching course content in a matter inconsistent with the beliefs of the alumni. Buckley eventually became a leading voice in the American conservative movement in the latter half of the twentieth century.

Reviews and legacy

''God and Man at Yale'' received some mixed or harsh reviews when it was first published, including those of Peter Viereck and

McGeorge Bundy McGeorge "Mac" Bundy (March 30, 1919 – September 16, 1996) was an American academic who served as the U.S. National Security Advisor to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson from 1961 through 1966. He was president of the Ford Fou ...

. Many American academics and pundits underestimated the ultimate impact that the book and its author would have on American society, thinking that it would quickly fade into the background. Quite the opposite happened, as Buckley used it as a launching pad into the public eye. Buckley himself credited the attention his book received to its introduction, written by John Chamberlain, saying that it "chang dthe course of his life" and that the famous ''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

'' editorial writer had acted out of "reckless generosity". Buckley went on to be an active force in the conservative movement through the political magazine he started, ''

National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...

'', and his television show '' Firing Line''. The magazine and its creator played a crucial role in tying together the different factions of the arising conservative movement to form a potent political force.

George Will George Frederick Will (born May 4, 1941) is an American libertarian conservative writer and political commentator. He writes columns for ''The Washington Post'' on a regular basis and provides commentary for '' NewsNation''. In 1986, ''The Wall ...

called the book "a lovers' quarrel with his ''alma mater''". In 2002, the work was featured in the

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American Cable television in the United States, cable and Satellite television in the United States, satellite television network, created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a Non ...

original series '' American Writers: A Journey Through History'', which focused on American writers of significance over the society's first 400 years, in an episode entitled "Writings of Kirk and Buckley". Assessments in 2011, sixty years after publication of the book include: * "All-Time 100 Nonfiction Books" of ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' magazine on "the 100 best and most influential ookswritten in English since 1923" (the first publication year of ''Time'') * a ''National Review'' symposium on the book.

Lee Edwards Lee Willard Edwards (December 1, 1932 – December 12, 2024) was an American academic and author and a fellow at The Heritage Foundation. He was a historian of the Conservatism in the United States, conservative movement in the United States. ...

, Alvin S. Felzenberg, George H. Nash, Charles R. Kesler, and Danilo Petranovich. (November 10, 2011).
"''God and Man at Yale'', Now: WFB's Classic at 60"

References

{{Reflist *Godfrey Hodgson (1996), ''The World Turned Right Side Up: A History of Conservative Ascendancy in America''. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

, pp. 75–77. *"William Buckley". ''American Decades'' CD-ROM. Gale Research, 1998. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, MI: Thomson Gale, 2005.

External links

* Austin W. Bramwell (Fall 2001)
"The Revolt against the Establishment: God and Man at Yale at 50"
'' The Intercollegiate Review''. * Denis Boyles (February 29, 2008)
"God, Man, Buckley, and Me"
''

''.
Panel discussion on ''God and Man at Yale'', November 4, 2011

1951 non-fiction books Books by William F. Buckley Jr. Books critical of modern liberalism in the United States Political books Regnery Publishing books Books about Yale University Literary autobiographies Books about conservatism