Summary of Inventing the University

Dr. David Bartholomae’s “Inventing the University” is an academic journal written to professors. More specifically; English/Writing professors. Bartholomae begins by explaining the phrase “Inventing the University”. Bartholomae then dives into an essay written by one of his students and adds his own insight on what his student did well and what the student needed to improve. He continues to explain that the student must learn to use the language of the discourse he is writing about. Bartholomae furthers this and describes that students often fail to make an academic conclusion and instead add in their own advice (6). Bartholomae explains how the use of the specified language must flow through the writer instead of the writer coming up with the language himself (8). He furthers this by explaining that it’s the professor’s job to teach the students to revise their writing for the reader in mind. Bartholomae also talks about how the student must learn to use another language, that of which belongs to someone with wisdom on the discourse, in order to speak with authority (17). Bartholomae concludes the paper by saying that students need to learn to mimic the “distinctive register” of the academic discourse they are trying to write for before they know enough to actually write for the specified discourse (19). He finishes this and adds that students need to be evaluated based on their ability to establish authority (20).