the professors of literature are now plainly on the defensive, and may be seen from time to time peeping under the lids of their writing desks, and poking around in all the corners of their departments and among their old papers, trying to find out, if they can, just ‘what’ subject it is they are teaching. Is it history, philology, anthropology, sociology, philosophy, ethics? It cannot very well be any of these things because they are all more competently taught in other departments. And yet in a way it seems to be all of them together and a good deal more. . . . It behooves us . . . for their sakes as well as our offspring’s, to look into this matter very soberly and find out if possible what, if anything, the professors of literature are teaching. After that we may be able to suggest what they ought to teach.

中文翻译：

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英语老师教什么？卷。2、1940年2月第2期

文学教授们现在显然处于守势，不时可以看到他们从写字台的盖子下面偷看，在他们系的各个角落和旧论文中四处寻找，试图找出，如果他们可以，只是他们正在教的“什么”主题。是历史、语言学、人类学、社会学、哲学、伦理学吗？它不可能是这些东西中的任何一个，因为它们在其他部门都有更胜任的教授。然而从某种意义上说，这似乎是他们所有人在一起，而且还有很多。. . . 我们理应如此。. . 为了他们和我们后代的利益，非常清醒地调查这件事，如果可能的话，找出文学教授在教什么，如果有的话。在那之后，我们也许可以建议他们应该教什么。