Productivity and the humanities

Abstract

This article examines critically the proposal for the modernization of Brazilian universities. The point of departure is the term "unproductive", applied as an epithet to disqualify those who defend the democratization of the university - a fact which eliminates the possiblity of debate. The article distinguishes between two models of modernization: one is applicable to universities tied to local oligarchies (in the North and Northeast), and the other to the large universities of the South. The analysis of the first model suggests that the proposal for transforming the federal universities into units for technical and professional training ends up aligning them even more closely with the local oligarchies. Analysis of the second, and more sophisticated, model suggests that the modernizing proposal would be an attempt to adapt the university to the present requirements of capitalist rationality.