THE OREGON DATT/y EMERALD it published Monday through Fridty during the
college year except Oct. 39; Nov. 22. 23, 26; Dec. 5 through Jan. 3; Mar. 4 through April 1 ;
ami after Mav 29; with issues on Nav. 24 and May 10, by the Associated Students of the
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More Than Just A Speech
President Harry K. Xewburn’s speech about this University
of ours is one which students can help footnote—if they're
interested enough.
And they can help set a precedent. This is the first time a
student assembly has featured the University President speak
ing to the students and the students speaking back to the
president through the medium of written questions. Thank
Merv Hampton for this one. If it’s a successful experiment
other such assemblies will probably follow the same pattern.
We think it’ll be worthwhile to assemble for this assembly.
For years students have made the complaint that education
has become a cold, impersonal procedure where the student
starts in at one end of the machine and comes out the other
end more or less a finished product—even to a numerical sym
bol indicating his quality.
Nothing personal nowadays, they say, in obtaining a degree
in big-time education. You just fill out the necessary forms,
write the necessary answers to questions and answer roll at
prescribed intervals.
If you fall by the wayside, it’s tough. There isn’t enough
time to give each student individual attention. Besides, there
are always plenty more where you came from.
And they’re right up to a certain point. Sheer weight of
numbers in a classroom or student body leaves no other course.
That’s why we like the idea of this student assembly where
the president and students have a chance to size each other up.
Perhaps it’s not a big step, but it’s the first such step around
here for the big man on the campus to revive the personal as
pect between students and that fearful group, “the adminis
tration.”
We figure the students attending this one o’clock Tuesday
can learn a thing or two. Perhaps even enjoy the experi
ence.—B. C.
Might As Well Relax
It’s all over but the shrieking now.
Early-morning breakfasts at 16 sorority houses this morn
ing will bring to a close Oregon’s latest women’s formal rush
period—one distinguished by many innovations.
While all the furor is still fresh in our minds, we’d like to
make a few suggestions regarding next year’s rushing.
First, it seems to us that it would have been advisable to
continue the practice of having open houses, which give all
women interested in rushing a chance to see all of the sorority
houses, and vice versa. It would have been possible to have such
a period this year, on the Sunday preceding rushing, when the
fraternities held open house.
The chief benefit of the open houses to women from small
towns who may not be known by sorority actives. Frequently
a.sorority will become interested in such a woman after having
met her. Panhellenic, however, reports that they have not al
ways been satisfied with the results of open houses and the
thought was to try something different this year.
Second, it seems unfair to ask a rushee to cut down to three
houses after only two rush periods, and continue carrying
only three houses for her last three days. It seems to us that
early in the period a rushee should not be asked to limit herself
so strictly, as it gives her very little leeway if she should be
dropped or become disinterested in one of her three houses.
We realize that the time factor was an important consideration
in this year’s ultra-condensed rush period, but adding one more
date to the third rush period schedule should not cause much
inconvenience.
Panhellenic’s answer to this is that by cutting down early,
a rushee gets to know the actives in the houses in which she is
interested better; and also, since sororities are cut down more
rapidly on the number of rushees which they can invite back,
it gives the rushee a better idea of how she stands with each
house.
We give Panhellenic credit for not being afraid to try some
thing different; but we feel that suggestions for improvement
are in order, and'should be given consideration in planning
fA r —tV tV _
fynxHH ^Jlte Shelf,
Moral Not Clear; But Story Is Good
By Allyn Herzog
Allen Rfed
Catcher In The Rye,
by J. D. Salinger
There is often a thin dividing
line between pornography and lit
erature. "Catcher in The Kye" is
saved from the former by Salin
ger’s insight into the adolescent
mind and by a less than success
ful attempt to emphasize youth
ful sensitivity to beauty in con
trast to cultural vulgarity.
The novel is centered around
the experiences of Holden Caul
field, a sixteen year old neurotic
boy who flunks out of a "ritzy”
preparatory school and goes on a
wild, emotional drunk for three
days In New York City. Narrated
in first person, it exploits Hol
den's meditations regarding wom
en, sex, perversions, schools, peo
ple and the "existential” problem
of life’s value to youth. The nar
ration flows smoothly and rapidly
over a series of violent emotionul
episodes so dear to the hearts of
the leisured, intellectually incom
petent middle class.
Holden, philosophizing all the
way, fights with his room-mate
because he feels that his room
mate had seduced a girl that Hol
den knew and liked; gets drunk
in a New York bar with some
women tourists from Seattle;
calls a hotel prostitute into his
room; is beaten up by her pimp;
has a long, incomprehensible talk
with his ten year old sister ("the
only real person he knows”); is
accosted by a homosexual teach
er; and ends up suffering ecsta
cies at the sight of his little sister
riding on a merry-go-round.
Holden’s favorite words, which
are used liberally, are "crumby",
"punkey" and "crap". His favor
ite complaint is that most people
are “phonies". Holden is a mix
ture of sensitivity and vulgarity,
sophistication and callowness, of
insecurity and independence. In
short, he is, to our only recently
vacated adolescent perspective,
a fairly accurate portrait of our
selves and our friends.
From these grim cirumstances
Salinger manages to create a
character of almost sentimental
stature. The reader who can view
the events calmly and who isn't
disturbed or pleased by the nu
merous four letter words with
which the text abounds (some of
which are a rarity, even in the
roughest of modern literature)
will come away from the book
with the feeling that he has met
an extraordinary and very real
character.
Holden is a well-potrayed ado
lescent, but he is an adolescent
endowed with an extreme degree
of artistic sensitivity toward the
people and objects around him.
Although his speech In vulgar
ami many of the things he sees
are vulgar. (Serially speaking)
he Is not a vulgar person. Ills pre
dilection for the lM-autlful carries
him to the point of neurotirlsin
and simultaneously rulses him
uhove vulgarity.
Salinger's moral, which Is rath
er maladroltly inserted Into the
novel thru a long speech by the
homosexual teacher via a quota
tion from the psychoanalyst
Stekel is we quote, "An immature
person is characterized by the de
sire to give his life nobly for some
cause, whereas a mature person
is one who will suffer humbly for
the same cause." This ties up
with the title of the novel, but
unfortunately it han little near
ing on the rest of the text. The
more obvious theme aroma to ua
to be that in a aoclety constituted
as our own la, in order to be hap
py it Is necessary to become less
sensitive, less critical, and more
plastic and adjustable. We don’t
agree with this thesis but there
it Is for what its worth.
In "Catcher In The Rye”, Salin
ger transcends his usual New
Yorker preciosity and in selecting
this volume, the "Book of The
Month Club" also reaches some
what above its ordinary low level.
This may be praising with faint
damn. The book, however, is en
joyable.
So THIS Is Oregon
Hit The Deck, Chum
The Outlook Seems Glum
— By Jim Haycox
This story, for what it’s worth,
comes from a friend of mine.
He met a gal the other duy who
was slightly goofball over some
guy . . . and probably said so to
this friend of mine so he'd run
and tell this other guy. It's very
involved.
Anyway, according to my
friend, she has become a walking
dictionary (unabridged) of this
guy's habits, likes, dislikes, pleas
ures and pains. Doubtless she
plans to sink her hooks in him
and eventually winch him up to
the altar. If she does so it will
serve her right for I know some
thing about this medium-Bie«d
god that she doesn't (or should
n't! know yet.
Jones (which we will call him)
is one fine fellow all right. He Is
all she says he is. However, he is
not and probably never will be fit
for marriage. He does not get up
in the mornings. . . the downfall
of even the most happily married.
I come to know ubout Jones
and, for that matter, about quite
a few people through the use of
the wake-up list on the tong. It
is a very simple device, this list,
a piece of paper divided into 4
sections marked 6:30, 7, 7:30 and
8. Nobody, incidentally, gets up
at 6:30 of their own volition.
The analysis of the individual
comes through study of their
method of signing this thing. The
average guy just puts his name in
the last convenient slot before
him and his class and that's the
end of it.
The first indication of irregu
1
Sorority Row
gyess is, t^ip first .spcorlty to have an outside dressing
table—vve use it to get ready to go in.”
larily is a parenthesis following
the name with the word Hard
inscribed. At this atago, however,
it is difficult to tell If waking
him up hatd will do the trick . . .
or if he's really kidding himself.
In the list of importance, the
next inscription in Very Hard
which is supposed to be just that.
The sleeper now admits that it's
partially out of his hands.
Next in importance is Blank
ets Off! This guy knows it’s go
ing to be a struggle but ho(>es
the wake-up man can outwit him.
Beyond this point people seem
to take off in all directions, each
choosing what, to him. seems
most emphatic. Very often it is
a frank plea for help which goes
Please, GET ME UP. From
here it is only a small step to
final admission of defeat Water!
The guy who puts this up has
lost the fight and knows it. But
his only alternative is staying up
all night. So it's the squirt gun
in the kisser every a.m.
But back to Jones, whose most
recent theory seems to be. "Given
enough time, I'll be all right."
So he starts off at 6:30 with
merely his name. This call is sup
posed to disturb him . . . but not
to wake him up. It's a fine point
the wake-up man must draw. At
7 he gets down to business.
—Hard This is important—,
at 7:30 it’s Very Hard, Blank
et's Off—Pull Me Out If You
Have To and at 8 Water I
Must Get Up This Morning. Ami*
he generally does make It down
by noon.
Saturday and Sunday morn
ings, the tone sometimes changes
noticeably. The list becomes a
place for cross and intimate re
marks . . . except for one which,
if I recall, went Hit Me Easy, I
Am Full Of Popcorn. I never
went up to find out.
fyna+H tlte Mvujue...
20 YEARS AGO
Oct. 9, 1931—Houses favor con
tinuing the “Bunion Derby” ac
cording to an all-campus |m»I1.
Only three living organizations
cast negative votes.
The opening nr it faculty golf
tournument was announced. The
two teams will be captained by
Howard Taylor, associate pro
fessor of psychology, and Donald
Erb, professor of economics.
10 YEARS AGO
Oct. 9, 1941—(’apt. Harry Bly
the’s women’s rifle class shudder
ed with apprehension when one
of the timbers supporting the roof
of the rifle range split.
The general extension division
has scheduled evening classes in
mathematics for army, navy, and
air aspirants.
5 YEARS AGO
Oct. 9, 1946—A special plan to
alleviate campus traffic prob
lems will be recommended to th<w
city council. The plan calls rS?*1
the blocking off of 18th between
University and Kincaid for 10
minutes each hour.