Word: douthat
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...subtle sense of guilt runs throughout the book. “My thirst for wealth and achievement is as great as any of my classmates,” Douthat writes in his conclusion. “Even this book has been written as much in ambition as in idealism...
...Douthat, Harvard is what he knows—not to mention that dropping the H-Bomb can never hurt a book’s bottom line. But even if Harvard College is a sufficient springboard for a cutting cultural commentary, what Privilege fundamentally lacks is the suggestion of a viable alternative...
...nearly 300 pages, Douthat offers us no solution, no recourse for reforming the system he finds so corrupt. The question hangs over the book like a dagger: Where do we go from here? Our current meritocracy doesn’t work perfectly, but it works well. After all, Harvard got Douthat where he wants to be—he’s currently a staff writer at The Atlantic Monthly and the author of a potentially bestselling book. He can’t be too upset about...
Ultimately, Douthat never emerges as a particularly funny narrator, nor an especially dynamic one. His tales of romantic travails and adolescent awkwardness are accessible, but never unique. The claims of complacence among the privileged are nothing new. We’re left with tired arguments and wistful nostalgia...
Privilege works as a memoir. It is technically proficient, well-written, and an easy read; enjoyable, but certainly nothing transcendent. In other words, Douthat emulates the very qualities he excoriates: hit the highlights just right, do what’s needed to make the grade, move onto the next step...