John is back in the host chair this week, and he’s joined by Tyler Austin Harper, assistant professor of environmental studies at Bates College and contributing writer at the Atlantic. Tyler has appeared on The Glenn Show before, but this is the first time he and John have had the opportunity to talk one-on-one. In this episode, Tyler talks about his research about extinction narratives in literature and culture and the two books he currently has in the works. John asks Tyler to expand on his critique of college admissions policies that seem to incentivize students to “perform” their race or oppression in order to distinguish themselves. Tyler has his own utopian vision of how college admissions should work—more emphasis on both test scores and recruitment from underrepresented groups—but he doubts it will ever come to pass. John and Tyler find common ground in their discomfort with being the go-to black person in the classroom and in their unusual hobbies. And finally, they discuss what the future holds for both Tyler and the humanities.
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0:00 A message from Glenn
3:56 Tyler’s research on human extinction and the end of the world
12:11 Tyler’s two forthcoming books
13:38 How elite schools incentivize “compulsory racial performance”
18:40 The “mission creep” of identity politics
24:23 Tyler Austin Harper University’s admissions policy
28:44 Does diversity contribute to quality of education?
35:18 The trouble with being “the black person” in class
37:38 Diversity at Bates College, where Tyler teaches
41:38 Night fishing with Tyler, insect collecting with John
45:46 Tyler’s prolific social media presence
48:38 Tyler’s five-year plan
52:51 The turn away from obscurantism in the humanities
Recorded April 28, 2024
Links and Readings
Glenn and John’s first conversation with Tyler
Glenn and John talk with Tyler and Daniel Bessner
Mary Shelley’s novel, The Last Man
Christopher Lasch’s book, The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations
Richard Hanania’s book, The Origins of Woke: Civil Rights Law, Corporate America, and the Triumph of Identity Politics
Glenn’s conversation with Peter Arcidiacono
Tyler’s X (formerly Twitter) account
Tyler’s Atlantic piece, “Polyamory, the Ruling Class’s Latest Fad”
Jacques Derrida’s essay, “No Apocalypse, Not Now”
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