Disciplines under Attack

Abstract

From the late nineteenth century onwards, the pursuit of knowledge within universities became professionalized and formally channelled through the development of academic disciplines. The discipline, as both a structural mechanism for organizing academics in the workplace, and a community with knowledge, theories and methods in common, continues to play a significant role in regulating the behaviour and intellectual endeavours of academics. The emergence of the modern disciplines at the end of the nineteenth century created the conditions necessary for academic freedom to become a reality. However, disciplines also curb dissent and encourage conformity to particular norms. In relation to academic freedom, then, disciplines serve as a practical realization of a marketplace of ideas while at the same time imposing limits on what is considered acceptable academic work.