Campus Recall by James A. Altena

Book Review

Campus Recall

The 'Making of Men': The Idea and Reality of Newman's University in Oxford and Dublin
by Paul Shrimpton

Gracewing, 2014
(631 pages, $36.00, paperback)

reviewed by James A. Altena

In standard biographies of John Henry Newman, the four years from 1854 to 1858 he spent as first rector of the newly founded Catholic University of Ireland (CUI) in Dublin are generally glossed over and treated as a failed attempt to put into practice the ideals he articulated in his famous and influential 1852 lecture series, The Idea of a University: Defined and Illustrated. Paul Shrimpton's in-depth treatment of that period in Newman's life, a major addition to extant Newman scholarship that makes extensive use of unpublished archival source materials, aims to alter that perception and give Newman his due as a practical man of action as well as a theorist.

After an initial sketch of Newman's life up to 1850 that places special emphasis upon his experiences first as a student with tutors and then as a tutor to students, Shrimpton considers in turn the foundation of CUI, Newman's vision for the university, the organization and daily life of the fledgling institution, the mounting problems of maintaining CUI, and its parlous existence after Newman's departure until its final absorption in 1909 into University College Dublin (which became the far more successful National University of Ireland). This is followed by assessments of reasons for CUI's general failure and of Newman's educational legacy. Of these, the discussions of Newman's formative influences, his vision of higher education, and his legacy in this area form a theoretical skeleton to which the other facets add factual flesh.

THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:


James A. Altena is the associate editor of Fanfare magazine, a comprehensive bimonthly periodical for reviews of classical music recordings. He is a member of All Saints Episcopal Church in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, and is pursuing a Ph.D. in church history at Westminster Theological Seminary in Glenside, Pennsylvania.

calling all readers

Please Donate

"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand

"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor

Support Touchstone

• Not a subscriber or wish to renew your subscription? Subscribe to Touchstone today for full online access. Over 30 years of publishing!


personal subscriptions

Purchase Print &
Online Subscription

Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!


RENEW your print/online
subscription

Purchase
Online Subscription

Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives including pdf downloads for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!


RENEW your online subscription

gift subscriptions

GIVE Print &
Online Subscription

Give six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for the reduced rate of $29.95. That's only $2.50 per month!


RENEW your gift subscription

Transactions will be processed on a secure server.

bulk subscriptions

Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.

kindle subscription

OR get a subscription to Touchstone to read on your Kindle for only $1.99 per month! (This option is KINDLE ONLY and does not include either print or online.)

Your subscription goes a long way to ensure that Touchstone is able to continue its mission of publishing quality Christian articles and commentary.


more from the online archives

21.10—December 2008

Savior in a Manger

Early Christian Teaching on the Incarnation & Redemption by Patrick Henry Reardon

25.5—Sept/Oct 2012

Easy Burden

on the Blessings & Challenges of Homeschooling by Graeme Hunter

16.4—May 2003

Common Sense

Chesterton & the Aristotelian Tradition by Patrick Henry Reardon

00