Old School by Tobias Wolff
"Old School" by Tobias Wolff is a novel that intertwines themes of identity, morality, and the pressures of academic life, drawing from the author’s own experiences at a prep school. The story follows a young Jewish narrator grappling with class snobbery and a subtle undercurrent of anti-Semitism while striving to find his place at an elite institution. He excels in English and becomes involved with the literary magazine, where he eagerly anticipates a meeting with renowned authors, including Robert Frost and Ernest Hemingway. A pivotal moment occurs when he competes for the Hemingway prize and resorts to plagiarism to achieve success, mirroring the struggles of a peer who conceals their identity to fit in. His deceit is ultimately uncovered, leading to his expulsion and the revocation of his university acceptance, prompting a period of aimlessness followed by military service. The narrative also explores the complexities of personal identity through the character of Dean Makepeace, whose own fraught relationship with truth and reputation culminates in a significant resignation. "Old School" thus presents a nuanced examination of the formative experiences of youth, the search for authenticity, and the repercussions of deceit in a high-stakes academic environment.
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Old School by Tobias Wolff
Excerpted from an article in Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition
First published: 2003
Type of work: Novel
The Work
Although Wolff calls Old School a novel, its plot follows the events of his own life beginning with his enrollment at prep school (in other words, it begins where This Boy’sLife leaves off). The narrator of the story, Wolff’s stand-in, is intimidated by the class snobbery at his school, particularly the hint of anti-Semitism that he senses. (The narrator’s father, like Wolff’s, is Jewish.) He struggles with most of the academic material at school, but finds his niche in English classes and on the staff of the literary magazine. He becomes caught up in a school tradition—the chance to have a one-on-one meeting with a famous visiting writer. These writers include Robert Frost, Ayn Rand, and Ernest Hemingway, said to be a friend of the school’s dean. When the time comes to compete for the Hemingway prize, he struggles to produce a worthy submission. In the end, he plagiarizes a story from another school’s literary magazine, changing only a few details. In the story, “School Dance,” a prep-school girl hides her Jewish identity in order to attend a country club party. The narrator’s version of the story (with the protagonist changed to a boy) is initially praised by everyone at school, but before long his deception is uncovered, and he is expelled the same day. His acceptance to Columbia University is withdrawn, and he drifts for a few years before enlisting in the army.
The last section of Old School tells the story of Dean Makepeace, who left his post for a year at the time of the planned Hemingway visit. It turned out that the dean had never, in fact, known Hemingway, but he had allowed this misconception to circulate on campus for many years. When he finds out not only that Hemingway will visit campus, but also that a student is going to be expelled for dishonesty, he impulsively resigns from his position. Although he eventually returns, his decision to separate himself from the false persona he had formerly allowed to stand reflects the novel’s emphasis on the fluid process of identity creation.
Review Sources
Booklist 100, no. 1 (September 1, 2003): 9.
Kirkus Reviews 71, no. 17 (September 1, 2003): 1100.
Library Journal 128, no. 18 (November 1, 2003): 126-127.
The New York Times Book Review, November 23, 2003, p. 12.
Publishers Weekly 250, no. 41 (October 13, 2003): 57.
Time 162, no. 22 (December 1, 2003): 98.