Cambridge Univ. Press

ERIC SILVERMAN (ERICS@DEPAUW.EDU)
Mon, 19 Feb 1996 10:13:51 -0500

I find it curious, if not troubling, that there has been no discussion here
about the recent events at Cambridge University Press. It seems to me that
they allowed political and profit concerns to outweigh scholarly merit. (I
could be wrong, in which case I would welcome correction)

What courses of action are people contemplating?

1. To make note of the situation, yet to not act? (Which, of course, is a form
of action.)
2. To refuse to submit manuscripts to CUP?
3. To refuse to order CUP books for classes? (However, I recognize that this
penalizes those who published with CUP prior to this event, and also, in a way,
seems to allow politics to interfere with the discussion of scholarly ideas.)

Now, don't get me wrong: I am aware, as we all are, that politics, economics,
etc., intersect with scholarship, presses, publications, etc. I am concerned
here not with these wider, Foucaultian (if you will) issues, but with the
specifics of this particular incident.

It is a tough issue all around.


Eric Silverman
DePauw University