Someone Had to Buy These Books

Harvard syllabi often feature the same name under “Course Head” and “Required Reading,” but what goes into the decision to assign one’s own book to unsuspecting students? FM took a look at two different philosophies behind this age-old practice.

Professors across the disciplines use their published works as required articles or textbooks for their courses, but not all believe in making their brainchild a course requirement. Social Analysis 34, “Knowledge of Language” Professor Cedric Boeckx said, “I feel uneasy about asking my students to buy my own text for class.”

“I don’t think that I should use my position to make it happen,” he said. Modest man, modest sales: Boeckx’s students read just excerpts of his “Linguistic Minimalism,” which as of February 11 ranked #509,244 in sales on amazon.com.

But in Social Analysis 10, “The Principles of Economics,” Beren Professor of Economics N. Gregory Mankiw’s 150-dollar “Principles of Economics” is the only required text. Yet Mankiw maintains he isn’t fishing for royalties: his book was in the class before he was.

“I believe that my being the textbook author was one reason the department turned to me when [Baker Professor of Economics] Martin Feldstein stepped down from his role as course head. So, while the professor chooses the book, in this case, to some degree, the book determined the professor,” Mankiw wrote in an e-mail.

Mankiw’s book ranked #7,593 in sales on Feb. 10, but dropped to #14,535 on Feb. 11. FM could not conclusively link this fact to the drop in Ec 10 enrollment from nearly 1,000 students in the fall to 751 in the spring. But it certainly seems suspicious.