SHADES OF THE PRISON HOUSE

From the first premonition of a college career to the many wise saws and instances that aid him across the channel from secondary school, the Freshman is the victim of advice. Yet, the first few months of college mark only the beginning of the storm of suggestion. The maze of the tutorial system and the mysteries of the magic invoked by the two words, concentration and distribution, still remain for the initiate before the advisory fetish has fulfilled its function. Today, in the New Lecture Hall, the old ritual will take place, and the Freshman will be initiated into at least the mechanics of the present system.

It is important to realize that only the mechanics will be revealed. The meeting will focus the Freshman's attention, present him with the machinery of course and credit requirements, and expect a little creative thinking in return. It is the first official glimpse given the undergraduate that reveals the direct connection of college courses to earning a living. It may perhaps clarify the some what murky atmosphere surrounding the language requirements and make definite the vaguely ominous prophecies concerning Divisionals.

Other sources of information officially open to the Freshman who plunges into these troubled waters, are the University pamphlet and his Advisor. If after all these sources of fact have been thoroughly plumbed, he finds that he has mastered the intricacies of this educational process, he may safely assume an attitude of nonchalance toward whatever courses the college may offer.