ABSTRACT
The phrase "left unmanipulated" deserves emphasis in the context of advocacy in the classroom. In some accounts, autonomy is presented simply as a quality of all rational beings. This can be made to look plausible in terms of a highly abstract image of rationality, in which rationality entails the ability to make rational decisions, which is then identified with autonomy. Diana T. Meyers has developed an elaborate and searching account of the skills of autonomy that people can acquire: in her account, a high degree of autonomy is an achievement that may require insight, inventiveness, and strength. The skills of autonomy—especially In relation to moral, political, and social issues—are part of what should be learned in college. There is a good deal to be said about the political importance of producing college graduates who both have reflective personal commitments and are good at understanding opposing points of view.
