A couple of weeks ago, Harry Davis ’11 put up a link to an article from a 2002 edition of Yale Alumni Magazine titled “Debate? Dissent? Discussion? Oh, don't go there!” by Michiko Kakutani. A couple days later Eli Dupree ’13 reposted the link urging people to read the article. It seems that the debate around the article ended before it even started. No discussion. No debate. No dissent.  The irony cannot be ignored.

Despite the lack of responses and debate about the article, the questions still stands: does Ms. Kakutani have a point? Have the students of today truly become more passive? Has the hyperconsciousness of political correctness turned our generation of millenials into reticent youths?  Have we become passive observers of our own educations? If so, why?

In her article, Kakutani talks about the language of apathy and non-confrontation that has become the language of our generation. This form of communication rolls off our tongues without second thoughts. Phrases such as “whatever,” “no problem,” and “don’t go there” seem all too familiar. According to Kakutani, therein lies the problem; the language of avoidance and de-escalation has become second nature- the language that fills our daily lives. Our generation, “as a group, are less rebellious than their predecessors, more practical-minded, less individualistic, and more inclined to value team over self, duties over rights, honor over feeling, action over words,” Kakutani said.

Is this necessarily a bad thing? According to Dr. Gastaldo, Chair of Colby’s geology department, “You are going to be learning for the rest of your life, college is training you how to learn. It is training you how to look at problems and solve them by thinking critically and analytically; discussion and a Socratic education are vital to this.” When asked about his views on class participation, a member of the class of 2012 said “When a potential employer looks at my transcript, they are not going to see how much I raised my hand, or how much I ‘challenged my peers to engage,’ they are going to see the grades, so that is what I focus on.”

However, Gastaldo has detected a noticeable shift in the mentality of students that goes directly against the notion of Socratic education and critical thinking. “It is definitely generational, not about demographics,” says Gastaldo. “There is rarely enough back and forth that forces students to challenge one another and take the material to the next level and truly engage.”

An anonymous sophomore said, “Participation rarely has anything to do with your grade, you can argue all you want during class, but exam time is the moment of truth and the only thing that is going to save you is knowing your stuff, not winning some petty turf war.”

However, it is important to keep in mind that, although a pattern has been detected, it is merely an observation that has turned into a generalization. According to Yana Mayayeva ’14, “Grades are not all that matter. Just because something isn’t written on paper does not make it any less real. When you are looking for a job, your grades will play a role, but your ability to truly engage is one that is acquired through participation and true immersion in the material. No test can teach you that.”

“There are so many kids who just don’t talk during class, but when you have to do a group project with them, you find out that they have a lot to say. I wish they would speak up during class, it would be a lot more interesting to have a dissenting opinion as opposed to sitting in a room with a bunch of people who agree with each other,” said an anonymous senior.

So why are so many students opting to stay mute instead of taking on the challenge of debate? A member of the class of 2012 says, “I like to stay quiet during class; I pay close attention and study hard. I rarely speak up because in the end, my grade is about my performance on the test, not about the verbal sparring matches.”

A female first-year claims that she stays quiet during class discussions because of her political orientation. “I am a conservative in what seems to be a sea of liberals who preach acceptance until you disagree with them- then its game over. I don’t like to speak up in class because I feel like I am the only one on my side. I don’t want to stir up the pot or get shut down as I have been in the past,” she said.

In Kakutani’s article she looks to several contemporary cultural components that have bred these attitudes of conflict avoidance and passivity. Kakutani talks about the events of September 11, 2011. There is no “great divide” regarding the events of that day as there was with the war in Vietnam. The passion and debate sparked by that war bred a culture of youths who were aware, who were not afraid of activism and who were empowered by the possibility that they could make a difference. It seems that there have been few events in contemporary politics that have caused such a great divide in American culture, at least very few events that the youth has latched onto as hard as Vietnam.

The second cause, according to Kakutani, is the emergence and infiltration of the movement of political correctness. There has been a newfound hyperconsciousness on what is and is not polite to say.   Fear of breaching the doctrine of political correctness has also had a silencing effect.

According to Jeff Nunokawa, a professor of English at Princeton University, "Debate has gotten a very bad name in our culture. It's become synonymous with some of the most nonintellectual forms of bullying, rather than as an opportunity for deliberative democracy."

So what does this all mean? We argue less, so what? It is not about the “argument,” it is about the lack of engagement. Lack of debate is evidence of a failure to test convictions and ideals relative to the views of peers. According to Kakutani, “It suggests a closing off of the possibilities of growth and transformation and a repudiation of the process of consensus building.”