b) Discuss Fritz. Karithy's The Refund as a satire on modern educational system.
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Answer:
In Fritz Karinthy’s play Refund, a former student, Wasserkopf, asks for his money back, because the tuition that he paid did not improve his prospects in life. Wasserkopf’s education did not make him particularly smart, nor did it help him gain a stable job. Wasserkopf seems to believe that his education had an obligation to provide these things for him. Since it didn’t, Wasserkopf thinks he has a right to ask for his money back.
In a way, Wasserkopf’s situation bears resemblance to the predicament of students in the United States. Many students pay lots of money to attend colleges and earn degrees. However, these degrees don’t always beget secure jobs or stable earnings. In this sense, it seems reasonable to argue that the education system in general does not prepare students for life. Earning a living is a key part of life, and the education system seems to routinely not make it easier for people to earn a living.
If the student debt crisis is taken into account, the United States education system probably makes the education system that Wasserkopf rails against seem benign or innocuous. Not only does America’s education system regularly not prepare students for life, it often hampers them by putting them thousands of dollars in debt before they graduate.