May 12, 2000

Living Up to the Meaning of 'Emeritus'

By JAY PARINI

"That is no country for old men," W.B. Yeats once wrote of his mythical kingdom of Byzantium. This isn't, either. Old men and women are cast aside, left to bide their time in retirement communities or campers. The lucky ones retain their health, living independently of their children. They chop wood, build model airplanes, or fill in the blanks of their lives with some analogous activity. It's a sorry fate, and one that should not befall academics.

We're lucky

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