(Super) Star-Struck?

Harvard students know better than most that the Harvard name carries a lot of weight. But despite its appeal to their vanity, students come to find out after a few semesters, that a big name does not necessarily guarantee satisfaction.

However, the Harvard name is extremely alluring; and as a result, the Harvard Faculty has several professors who one seems to see and read everywhere: in bookstores, major magazines, newspapers or the list of Nobel laureates. The superstar professors, so to speak, include: Seamus Heaney, Alan Dershowitz, Helen Vendler, Stephen J. Gould and Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

We love to read their work and ask them questions, but is taking a class taught by a superstar on his or her bread-and-butter subject as rewarding as it sounds?

It is certainly exciting to be in close proximity to a brilliant and famous professor, but one must be wary of the intellectual rewards reaped from his or her class. I thought that taking African-American Studies 137y: "The African-American Literary Tradition" with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. this semester would be equivalent to taking "The Bible and its Interpreters" with Maimonides, but I found instead that Gates' popularity and acclaim ultimately detract from the content of his course.

Since the course was an elective for me, I wanted an engaging class with an enthusiastic professor, but I came to feel that Af-Am 137y is not Professor Gates' priority. He has published four books in the last year; and in addition to chairing the African-American studies department, he is also the editor of Transition and writes prolifically for The New Yorker. How could he have the time to juggle all of these projects and simultaneously devote a lot of energy and hours of preparation to a class whose subject he knows inside out? Better yet, should he?

I thought he should and switched out of the class. While I admire Professor Gates' mind and his success, I wanted more from him. He gave insightful lectures and I appreciated his theories, but he read his lectures verbatim from material he had written in years past and then helpfully referred us to the book from which they came. I wanted to feel as though what I was getting from lecture was unattainable anywhere else.

A seminar with Professor Gates would be marvelous because interacting closely with a man of his intelligence would no doubt be extremely rewarding. But larger lecture courses with superstar professors on the subjects they know best are, paradoxically, often a disappointment. Not always, and not to everyone--many students enjoy simply listening to a superstar professor and being in his or her presence. And some superstars, especially those who teach Core courses, make a point of devoting a substantial amount of time to their classes, either to raise interest in the subject matter or simply because they love teaching.

But it is irresponsible of undergraduates to assume that classes taught by household names are going to be the most rewarding. For one, great scholarship does not necessarily imply great teaching ability. Second, subject matter and reading lists, among other factors, should always take precedence over the cache of a big name. Many superstars are just too busy to give loads of time to their courses--and considering the temptations offered by fame at Harvard, we cannot put the blame only on them. If Harvard valued teaching more--and increased the size of the faculty to increase the faculty-student ratio and to spread the administrative obligations of faculty among more professors--perhaps all professors, including the superstars, would be able to devote more time to their interaction with students. In my opinion, every professor should teach an undergraduate section in their larger lecture courses, the way many professors at Princeton do.

Famous professors are everybody's sweethearts, including the administration's, because they represent the pinnacle of their respective fields. We admire them because they have made names for themselves through scholarship; they give all of us would-be scholars hope that we can reap success from worthwhile toil. But reading their books, bumping into them on campus or attending the occasional lecture is one thing--enrolling in one of their classes is another. I am enticed by fame and grandeur as much as the next guy, but time and electives are precious commodities. So I switched into an English seminar and will be content to read Gates on the side.

Daniel M. Suleiman's column appears on alternate Wednesdays.