--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Most of the students, and probably the…" description: "\"“Most of the students, and probably the faculty, were ambivalent about the whole idea of Disciplines. They were socially divisive, the theory behind th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/lev-grossman-747_bat-mitzvah_most-of-the-students-and-probably-the-fa_733861.png" --- # Most of the students, and probably the faculty, were… ![“Most of the students, and probably the faculty, were ambivalent about the whole idea of Disciplines. They were socially divisive, the theory behind them was weak, and everybody ended up studying pretty much the same curriculum anyway, so what was the point? But it was traditional for every student…” quote by Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/lev-grossman-747_bat-mitzvah_most-of-the-students-and-probably-the-fa_733861.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/lev-grossman-747_bat-mitzvah_most-of-the-students-and-probably-the-fa_733861.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/lev-grossman-747_bat-mitzvah_most-of-the-students-and-probably-the-fa_733861.png) > ““Most of the students, and probably the faculty, were ambivalent about the whole idea of Disciplines. They were socially divisive, the theory behind them was weak, and everybody ended up studying pretty much the same curriculum anyway, so what was the point? But it was traditional for every student to have one, so a Discipline every student would have. Alice called it her magic bat mitzvah.”” [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote critiques the arbitrary nature of academic disciplines, suggesting they often lack clear purpose and end up being uniform despite claims of diversity. **In simple terms:** Academic fields can feel pointless and uniform. Key Takeaway Question the value of imposed categories. Themes education tradition conformity meaninglessness identity Mood skeptical reflective Type critical observational When to use this quote - university curricula - career planning - personal identity formation - cultural rituals Key Concepts social theory institutional critique personal narrative Questions to Reflect On - Do you see any discipline that truly differs from the rest? - How can we make curricula more meaningful? A Different Perspective It overlooks disciplines that genuinely foster innovation and critical thinking. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bat mitzvah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bat-mitzvah/) [Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) [Disciplines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disciplines/) [Disciplines Socially](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disciplines-socially-5742443/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Faculty Ambivalent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faculty-ambivalent-5742444/) [Student Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/student-discipline-5742442/) ## Related quotes > [All disciplines affect each other. Mistakenly the man says, 'This is the only area where I let down.' Not true. Every let down affects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/all-disciplines-affect-each-other-mistakenly-the-man-says-this-is-the/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [A defining reality for me is what Scripture teaches in Hebrews 12, that God is our father, and that a sign that he loves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-harris/a-defining-reality-for-me-is-what-scripture-teaches-in-hebrews-12/) [Joshua Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-harris/) > [“You think it's all rather too "New Age" to be taken seriously, eh?' 'Not at all.' 'But it's an ancient discipline...' 'New Age disciplines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-barker/you-think-it-s-all-rather-too-new-age-to-be-taken-seriously-eh-not-at/) [Nicola Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-barker/) > [We need to eliminate the existing hierarchy of subjects. Elevating some disciplines over others only reinforces outmoded assumptions of industrialism and offends the principle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/we-need-to-eliminate-the-existing-hierarchy-of-subjects-elevating/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [As a mother, I don't want any girl twerking near my kid at a bat mitzvah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-salie/as-a-mother-i-don-t-want-any-girl-twerking-near-my-kid-at-a-bat/) [Faith Salie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-salie/) > [“So I close this long reflection on what I hope is a not-too-quaveringly semi-Semitic note. When I am at home, I will only enter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/so-i-close-this-long-reflection-on-what-i-hope-is-a-not-too/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I was in middle school at a bat mitzvah, and a fashion photographer, Suzy Gorman, came up to me and asked me if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-windsor/i-was-in-middle-school-at-a-bat-mitzvah-and-a-fashion-photographer/) [Devon Windsor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-windsor/) > [I wasn't bat mitzvahed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-heckerling/i-wasn-t-bat-mitzvahed/) [Amy Heckerling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-heckerling/) > [When I wasn't working on Broadway, I worked in a Bat Mitzvah dress shop and was the Cinderella of the shop - always cleaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lea-michele/when-i-wasn-t-working-on-broadway-i-worked-in-a-bat-mitzvah-dress/) [Lea Michele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lea-michele/) > [I grew up on the North Shore of Chicago, and I don't think I had a friend that wasn't Jewish. I spent more time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-brosnahan/i-grew-up-on-the-north-shore-of-chicago-and-i-don-t-think-i-had-a/) [Rachel Brosnahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-brosnahan/) > [There was a year straight where every weekend, I went to at least one bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah, and we would all go,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/there-was-a-year-straight-where-every-weekend-i-went-to-at-least-one/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [Everyone in my grade is turning 13, so there are bunches of bar and bat mitzvahs. They're very dressy. It's fun picking out outfits.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-fanning/everyone-in-my-grade-is-turning-13-so-there-are-bunches-of-bar-and/) [Elle Fanning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-fanning/) > [I am terminally sentimental about graduations. They are more individual than weddings, more conscious than christenings, or bar mitzvahs or bat mitzvahs. They are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-am-terminally-sentimental-about-graduations-they-are-more/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [“Listen,” she said, “how much money do you have on you right now?” “Zero dollars and zero cents,” I answered. I turned off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/listen-she-said-how-much-money-do-you-have-on-you-right-now-zero/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“practice, the synagogue generally limits its services only to members in the area of bat or bar mitzvah. Most life-cycle events (outside of these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-m-olitzky/practice-the-synagogue-generally-limits-its-services-only-to-members/) [Kerry M. Olitzky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-m-olitzky/) ## More by Lev Grossman > [“It was about damn time something happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/it-was-about-damn-time-something-happened/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [We're wired to expect the world to be brighter and more meaningful and more obviously interesting than it actually is. And when we realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/we-re-wired-to-expect-the-world-to-be-brighter-and-more-meaningful/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“He was going to sign the papers and he was going to be a motherfucking magician.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/he-was-going-to-sign-the-papers-and-he-was-going-to-be-a/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“Being brave was easy when you would rather die than give up. Fatigue meant nothing when you actually wanted to suffer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/being-brave-was-easy-when-you-would-rather-die-than-give-up-fatigue/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [As a writer I'm more drawn to villains who are just slightly mad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/as-a-writer-i-m-more-drawn-to-villains-who-are-just-slightly-mad/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“He wasn't in a safe little story where wrongs were automatically righted; he was still in the real world, where bad bitter things happened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/he-wasn-t-in-a-safe-little-story-where-wrongs-were-automatically/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I love rare books. Not that I own a lot of them, mind you. You couldn't quite call me a rare-book collector. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-love-rare-books-not-that-i-own-a-lot-of-them-mind-you-you-couldn-t/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [By now he had learned enough to know that when he was getting annoyed at somebody else, it was usually because there was something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/by-now-he-had-learned-enough-to-know-that-when-he-was-getting-annoyed/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [About as close you can get to the perfect cerebral thriller: searingly smart, ridiculously funny, and fast as hell... I defy anybody to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/about-as-close-you-can-get-to-the-perfect-cerebral-thriller-searingly/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“It's true," Eliot said. "Statistically, historically, and however else you want to look at it, you are almost never right. A monkey making life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/it-s-true-eliot-said-statistically-historically-and-however-else-you/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“God, I hope we don’t have to use that,” was all he said out loud. “Oh, come on, Quentina. We’re not looking for trouble.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/god-i-hope-we-don-t-have-to-use-that-was-all-he-said-out-loud-oh-come/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I mean, when you're tired of book reviews, you're tired of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-mean-when-you-re-tired-of-book-reviews-you-re-tired-of-life/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [My specialty as a collector is books that almost have value. When I love a book, I don't buy the first edition, because those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/my-specialty-as-a-collector-is-books-that-almost-have-value-when-i/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I used to write in a local coffee shop, but there was another guy, another writer, who kept sitting in my favorite seat. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-used-to-write-in-a-local-coffee-shop-but-there-was-another-guy/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I don't know if I've ever derived such an immediate sense of calm and well-being from any book as I did from 'Right Ho,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-don-t-know-if-i-ve-ever-derived-such-an-immediate-sense-of-calm-and/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) [Explore all 379 Lev Grossman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) ## More Bat mitzvah quotes > [As a mother, I don't want any girl twerking near my kid at a bat mitzvah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-salie/as-a-mother-i-don-t-want-any-girl-twerking-near-my-kid-at-a-bat/) [Faith Salie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-salie/) > [“Listen,” she said, “how much money do you have on you right now?” “Zero dollars and zero cents,” I answered. I turned off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/listen-she-said-how-much-money-do-you-have-on-you-right-now-zero/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I am terminally sentimental about graduations. They are more individual than weddings, more conscious than christenings, or bar mitzvahs or bat mitzvahs. They are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-am-terminally-sentimental-about-graduations-they-are-more/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Everyone in my grade is turning 13, so there are bunches of bar and bat mitzvahs. They're very dressy. It's fun picking out outfits.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-fanning/everyone-in-my-grade-is-turning-13-so-there-are-bunches-of-bar-and/) [Elle Fanning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-fanning/) > [There was a year straight where every weekend, I went to at least one bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah, and we would all go,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-rogen/there-was-a-year-straight-where-every-weekend-i-went-to-at-least-one/) [Seth Rogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-rogen/) > [I grew up on the North Shore of Chicago, and I don't think I had a friend that wasn't Jewish. I spent more time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-brosnahan/i-grew-up-on-the-north-shore-of-chicago-and-i-don-t-think-i-had-a/) [Rachel Brosnahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-brosnahan/) > [When I wasn't working on Broadway, I worked in a Bat Mitzvah dress shop and was the Cinderella of the shop - always cleaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lea-michele/when-i-wasn-t-working-on-broadway-i-worked-in-a-bat-mitzvah-dress/) [Lea Michele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lea-michele/) > [I wasn't bat mitzvahed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-heckerling/i-wasn-t-bat-mitzvahed/) [Amy Heckerling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-heckerling/) > [I was in middle school at a bat mitzvah, and a fashion photographer, Suzy Gorman, came up to me and asked me if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-windsor/i-was-in-middle-school-at-a-bat-mitzvah-and-a-fashion-photographer/) [Devon Windsor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-windsor/) > [“So I close this long reflection on what I hope is a not-too-quaveringly semi-Semitic note. When I am at home, I will only enter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/so-i-close-this-long-reflection-on-what-i-hope-is-a-not-too/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“practice, the synagogue generally limits its services only to members in the area of bat or bar mitzvah. Most life-cycle events (outside of these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-m-olitzky/practice-the-synagogue-generally-limits-its-services-only-to-members/) [Kerry M. Olitzky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-m-olitzky/) > [I was always dressing up as a kid. I had a dress for all the Los Angeles bar and bat mitzvahs that I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-gyllenhaal/i-was-always-dressing-up-as-a-kid-i-had-a-dress-for-all-the-los/) [Maggie Gyllenhaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-gyllenhaal/) > [Ever since I was a little girl, I loved to make things. I always made dresses for my Barbie dolls. When I was 13,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-bendet/ever-since-i-was-a-little-girl-i-loved-to-make-things-i-always-made/) [Stacey Bendet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-bendet/) > [When I am at home, I never go near the synagogue unless, say, there is a bar or bat mitzvah involving the children of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/when-i-am-at-home-i-never-go-near-the-synagogue-unless-say-there-is-a/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“A Jew ain't only a religion, and it ain't a race. It isn't an ethnicity, and you aren't disqualified if you're good at spreading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-kudera/a-jew-ain-t-only-a-religion-and-it-ain-t-a-race-it-isn-t-an-ethnicity/) [Alex Kudera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-kudera/) [Browse all 23 Bat mitzvah quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bat-mitzvah/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Most of the students, and probably the faculty, were ambivalent about the whole idea of Disciplines. They were socially divisive, the theory behind them was weak, and everybody ended up studying pretty much the same curriculum anyway, so what was the point? But it was traditional for every student to have one, so a Discipline every student would have. 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