One caveat: in analyzing the activities depicted in the novels, I confess to inadequacy in distinguishing between what constitutes administration/service and what constitutes politicking and conspiring. Although I feel confident that I can recognize drinking or sex, I am not always clear about the line between being on a committee, which is called doing service (and helps you earn merit pay), and something else which is called politicking and conspiring (and for which you earn no official rewards).
The importance of both in the academic life can’t be underestimated. In Moo, for example, politicking and conspiring (12 percent) is just about even with committee work (11 percent) in being represented in this novel. Compared to the data from NSOPF, Moo, set in a research university, shows a pretty fair representation of research activities–at 17 percent–about the same as the 14 percent characteristic of the total universe of institutions. Again, as a Research I university, Moo U. also shows time devoted to external consulting, 4 percent, close to the 2.7 percent shown in the federal survey.
The second novel, Wonder Boys, is mostly about getting loaded–as you can see from the figure of 12 percent in the drinking/drug—taking category. But it also falls into a fairly predictable range in the research and service categories, with 9 percent devoted to research, and 6 percent to service, the main service activity being an annual gala called WordFest, in which English majors get to meet editors and publishers from New York City, which also probably explains all the drinking and sex.
Straight Man, set in a comprehensive university like the CSU, shows itself to be pretty much like the CSU–heavy on the service component at 16 percent, which is close to the NSOPF’s 18 percent, and also, traditionally, with a demanding teaching load, lighter on research and scholarship, with only 4 percent of faculty time devoted to these activities.
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