WINING AND DINING

House dinners effect little more than simplification of the menu and crowding of the dining halls. From the undergraduate point of view they are irksome formalities which become, after long repetition, insignificant. The faculty residents converse in splendid isolation over their roast prime ribs of beef and afterwards withdraw to the shelter of the senior common room. Sometimes students are included at the high table, but the resulting haphazard intercourse with the staff is of minor worth. Often the guest of the evening discusses some question before an unrestricted audience, but student attendance is usually meager.

Here is an interesting example of the divergence between tutors and tutees which so contradicts the theory of the house plan. To blame either group for this breach would be unjust, for the disparity in age and interests is no unnatural barrier. But some enterprising individuals do enjoy familiarity with their tutors, and that such friendships are not more prevalent is to be regretted. The house dinner if properly handled would present a splendid opportunity to promote such contacts.

The Kirkland House "Coffeepot," in which a small group of interested students dine with a few instructors and afterwards adjourn to an intimate colloquium, is an instance of how well the relation between faculty and undergraduates may be exploited. Similar meetings, extended to the various fields of instruction in the several houses, should prove of advantage. They imply a certain enthusiasm and cooperation from the students which is now lacking, but publicity and stimulating programs can stir the indifferent. If house dinners of the usual sort were limited to occasions when speakers or entertainers of real interest are available, student attention would be stimulated. With wise direction the house dinner would be a significant part of house life rather than an empty formality.