The idea of a university in culture, culture in the idea of a university

Abstract

The author demonstrates that the idea of a university is deeply rooted in Western culture, showing the continuity of this idea and stressing that it is one of the oldest ideas in Europę: one of a few which date back to the Middle Ages and persist today. The author focuses mostly on presenting the factors behind the emergence of universities and on describing changeable models of a university up until mid-20th century. Particular attention is given to two models: the German and the English one, in their traditional format. On the margins of reflections about the university, the issue of culture, closely intertwined with the concept of education, runs through the text. The author asks a provocative question: ‘What instead of a university?’ and attempts to answer it by recalling a phenomenon from Ceau§escu’s Romania, i.e. underground cultural reproduction described by Constantin Noica.