The progressive thinking of UVA is shown here, where the basic principles of the institution seem to germinate. At the time, students were described to have certain “indiscretions” that were natural for their age. However, instead of using fear or force as a corrective measure, the university government was founded on the praise of morals and ambition, which through repetition, would help develop and mature a student’s future character. This contrasts with the use of fear which was properly deemed “degrading.”

In my Engagements class, we toured the Lawn with the Professor of Architectural History, Louis Nelson, who is working on a project to understand the use of slavery at UVA. As we walked through the lawn gardens, he explained the extensive use of “white space” in the history of the university, which separated the students and faculty from the slaves with the layout of the pavilions. This method kept the slaves on the outside of the U-shaped lawn, behind tall garden walls, and the students on the inside, so as to maintain complete separation of the black and white populations. It is interesting that these motives are not explicitly mentioned when describing the layout of the academic village. Perhaps this is included under the advantages of “tranquility and comfort” or “morals and uninterrupted study.”

The view towards physical education is interesting, especially due to the typical age of students at the time. Students who attended universities such as Harvard and UPenn in the early 1800’s typically entered when they were 12-14 years old. In modern schools, physical education is often required at these ages, and usually involves instruction pertaining to health and exercise. This contrasts with UVA’s Spartan-like training of youth to prepare them for combat through “military maneuvers and tactics,” which were encouraged during their free time. By teaching them at a young age, the focus seems to be on preparing students for “manhood” and cementing the lessons they learn for their whole life.

http://www.archives.upenn.edu/histy/features/1800s/1852/studt_origins.html

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2012/04/harvards-long-ago-student-risings/

It seems as though the general study of pharmacy was included in fields beyond medicine at UVA. At the time, the university aimed to educate its students in order to prepare them for life, which is suggested in the next sentence. Here, it is explained that this degree of medicine is necessary for science based students who wish to “aid human life and health.” This shows a more practical view towards pharmacy, likely focusing on uses of common, organic substances for treatment of ailments, which contrasts to modern, mass produced medicine. It is interesting that the curriculum would include naturopathy and “vegetable pharmacy” in their botany classes, in addition to mineral-based pharmacy in chemistry courses, as these concepts would not be explicitly included in a modern medical school syllabus.