Scholarship and life

Scholars are almost always academics. We assign the designation to professors and researchers with university posts who get paid to research and publish. The term “independent scholar” only proves this: The qualifier is necessary because “scholar” by itself implies an academic position. I think this is why I’ve been uneasy about my desire to continue my research concurrent with building a non-academic life. Research and teaching go hand in hand, but scholarship and a non-academic career doesn’t seem right. Is my on-going interest in my dissertation topic a sign that I haven’t yet let go of academia? Is there room for scholarship in a life completely removed from a university?

I think there is. After all, scholarship isn’t a job; it’s something some people do. I revel in learning and delight in detail. I enjoy the knowledge, insight, and fulfillment that comes from exploration and contemplation. Academic-type research is one aspect of a good life for me, just as reading, cooking, and long intellectual conversations are others. When I think about it this way, my continued fascination with the subjects of my grad school research isn’t out of place. It isn’t a manifestation of my refusal to move on. It’s part of who I am.

A few minutes ago, as I took a break from writing this post, I read this article. It’s a fascinating piece about a Russian family “discovered” by Soviet scientists after living alone in the Siberian taiga for decades. The author’s framing of Siberia as “five million square miles of nothingness” reminded me of a book I want to write. One day, I will write and publish it. It will be a work of scholarship, but my place outside the academy will free me to write it as I please, free of tenure deadlines and judgments. And that’s exactly what I want: to be a true, unfettered scholar. Put it another way, I want to be me.