Hope amid the ruins? The project of critical university studies

This paper explores the project of Critical University Studies (CUS). Rather than rehearsing the already well-rehearsed critiques of the contemporary academy, however, the paper adopts a more unusual approach and offers a philosophical exploration of the structure of hope to be found within CUS. Drawing on recent research within the philosophy of hope, the paper explores CUS as a project of hoping against hope. A detailed study of the anatomy of such hoping is presented via an analysis of its key constituent concepts and practices: justificatory rationale, mental imaging, pathways and agency thinking, and cognitive resolve. The paper has three aims. Firstly, by approaching the field from an angle not typically associated with it (i.e., hope), to contribute toward a richer conceptualization of CUS. While CUS has sometimes been chastised for painting a picture of unremitting gloom, the project outlined here is one that finds hope amid the ruins and is oriented toward a collective rebuilding. Secondly, to contribute to the philosophy of hope by exploring how key concepts deployed within the field play out in the ideas and practices of a contemporary political project. Finally, and most significantly, the key aim of the paper is a practical and political one—to unpack CUS’ hoping against hope in order to assess whether and how this might be mobilized. This is not without its problems and the paper concludes by offering a critical assessment of the project of CUS, locating its potential within a broader strategy of “non-reformist reform”.