Lords of Discipline

by Pat Conroy

Book Overview

Dramatically interweaves themes of brotherhood and betrayal as senior cadet, Will McLean, courageously struggles to forge his own honor code and manhood in a regimented, venerable, but corrupt... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0395294622
• ISBN13: 9780395294628
• Release Date: January 1980
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
• Length: 499 Pages
• Weight: 1.85 lbs.

Customer Reviews

One of my favorites...

I was reluctant to read The Lords of Discipline as I'm not much interested in books with military themes. But I finally decided to read it as I love Pat Conroy and it takes place in my favorite of all cities, Charleston, SC. Wow! Not only was I blown away, but I also have a new book for my top ten list. Aspiring novelist and basketball player, Will McLean, finds himself a college student at the Carolina Military Institute (The Citadel--thinly disguised). Will was not interested in the military, but he promises his dying father that he will attend his alma mater. Will doesn't exactly excel in military studies, but he's a decent student, an athlete, and his professors and peers recognize him for his integrity and his sense of fairness. Still, this is not an easy time to be a student in a military academy--especially in the South. The Viet Nam War was raging, the military was unpopular and desegregation was knocking on the doors of Southern schools. The Fourth Class system is brutal at best, and most cadets will look on their freshman year and Hell Night as living nightmares. There are also rumors of a powerful and clandestine group of Institute students and alumni called The Ten. While nothing has come forward to prove their existence, the possibility of such a group casts a cloud over the Corps of Cadets. Will and his roommates have survived the trials and tribulations of their underclassmen years. But circumstances change very rapidly. The first black student enrolls at the Institute and Will is asked to be a secret mentor to Cadet Tom Pearce. It quickly becomes apparent that a group of cadets is trying to run Pearce out of the Institute. Will steps in to intervene, and he discovers a truth so horrendous that this knowledge can bring down the Institute. It also makes Will and his roommates targets. Not only is their graduation now in jeopardy, but their lives are also in danger. Conroy is a master wordsmith, and I find myself reading his sentences over and over again. It's comparable to taking a bite of a decadent dessert, and rolling it around on your tongue to savor every forkful. His descriptions are priceless, his characters well fleshed out, and the plot will have you marathon reading to finish this 498-page book. I especially loved his observations about Charleston and the low country. Conroy also deals with timeless and universal issues. They include the struggles of a young boy growing into manhood and how difficult it is to stand up for your beliefs. Also, how those that love you can cause the worst hurt, and how those you think are loyal friends can betray you in a heartbeat. Conroy dwells on how it is possible to love and hate something at the same time (in this case, the Institute), and how the righteous don't always prevail. And while things might turn out in the end, they might not turn out the way you envision them. The one bad thing about Pat Conroy is that he is not one of those "serial" bestsellers wh

A " couldn't put it down" book

It was right after reading "My Losing Season" that I decided it was time to pick up this book. I had thought about reading it several times before, but I as I stated in my review of the nonfiction work "My Losing Season", I was trying to space out Pat Conroy's books because I knew that I'd only get to read them once for the first time.It was very interesting reading this book because even though it is a fictional story it is based on some true events (which are chronicled in "My Losing Season") as well being based on the realities of many that went through the rigors and trials of a military academy. Conroy interviewed students that graduated as well as students that didn't make it at various military schools (Citadel, VMI, Air Force Academy, etc.) to use their shared experiences to make this work ring true even though it was a fictional story much like many of the Law and Order television episodes are based on real crimes.I kept wondering how much of this story was totally made up and how much was based on real events. In "My Losing Season" Conroy tells the real story of his relationship with a girl that appears in the fictional work here. He changed a lot of the details, but the core truth of how badly she hurt him rings true in both the fictional story here and the actual account of the real events. It made me wonder what other stuff was nearly real in this fictional book...Mr. Conroy talks about how his alma mater wouldn't let him back on campus for many years after this book was published. It hit a cord which reverberated for a long time and I'll take that as a clue that this work, much like "The Prince of Tides" and "Beach Music" were thinly veiled truths, pieces of art that are much to mirror like for comfort.One downside to reading Conroy in general is the depression that always seems to hit me. I must fight my own demons that get stirred up as I turn the pages reading about his. But despite the scabs that get picked and the wounds that hurt over again, I like reading what he has to say because it's real. Real and true are funny ways to describe fiction but when must of us go day to day hiding and playing games perhaps it is enlightening to go ahead and pretend that what is real, is not, and what is not; is.If you have not yet read Pat Conroy, this is as good a place to start as any. This work is not as heavy duty as "Prince of Tides" and "Beach Music" and I'd imagine would probably appeal to a wider audience. Once you've read this I'd wager that you'll be anxious to get your hands on "My Losing Season". Enjoy.

well worth your time

i just finished reading the Lords of Discipline by Pat Conroy. This book was an assignment for my 12th grade The Novel class. although this sounds geeky especially for a teenager to say, i love to read. i really and truly enjoy reading, but that will be our secret. although i enjoy reading, in the past i haven't always enjoyed the novels i'm assigned to read in school (sorry to all you scarlet letter lovers out there, but nathaniel hawthorne didn't really do too much for me) The lords of Discipline was a much needed change of scenery. i would recommend this book to anyone who loves to read and even to people who don't consider themselves to be readers. despite your reading status, you will love this book. Pat Conroy has an awesome writing style. His use of imagery, makes one feel like he's apart of the book. Once you start this book, you won't be able to put it down. you'll even risk being called a book geek over this novel. so if you are looking for something to read that will not only make you laugh and cry but also teach you life lessons, i definatly encourage you to try The Lords of Disciple. i promise it will be well worth your time, it was worth mine!

The Lords of Discipline

I was required to read this novel for an elective English class. Little did I know that it would become one of my favorite books ever.After finishing the first chapter, I was drawn into the story and imediately a fan of Pat Conroy's. He has a style of writing where he, just as most passionate writers, get caught in the moment and lyrically write from the heart. McLean's experience through military school is something that everyone should read. Even if you are not the least bit interested in the military or it's politics, one can still learn something from this novel morally based on honor, entrapment, betrayal, friendship, and life change. I reccomend this book to both men and women who want to be moved by a page turning, eye watering, and heart opening novel.Thank you,Pat Conroy for giving me the knowledge of how brutal life can be, and thank you for an experience I was able to learn about. You are a brave soul.

This book is incredible - stayed up all night reading it!

This is one of my alltime favorite books and I think Will is one of the most amazing, soulful and best developed characters I have ever come across in any novel. I read this book in college a few years ago after a close male friend of mine showed me a particular excerpt from it which described a professor of Will's at The Citadel. He was the passionate professor whom Conroy began describing by writing "he was the most brilliant scholar I had ever known. . . " Anyway, at that time a mentor of mine, my favorite professor (an English Prof) and good friend, had just been diagnosed with cancer and was told he had only a few weeks to live. I was devastated and wanted to express to him how much he meant to me and I wanted him to know what an amazing and inspiring professor he had been but I couldn't seem to find words that would do justice to how incredible he was. Well, my friend Richard showed me a passage from Lords of Discipline which simply blew me away - it was exactly what I felt about Dr. Stirling and Conroy just put it so beautifully. I was immediately struck by his eloquence and his mastery of imagery and I borrowed the book and read it from cover to cover without stopping. After he died, Dr. Stirling's wife later told me that the letter I sent him with the Conroy quotation had touched him deeply and to this day The Lords of Discipline will always hold a special place in my heart. I met Pat Conroy at a book signing in Atlanta and was able to thank him personally for his words of inspiration. He was a lovely man and I would recommend any of his books (The Water is Wide is my second favorite). If I had only read the summary of what The Lords of Discipline is about I would not have bothered to read it - I am a female and I have never been one to enjoy military type novels but this was a big surprise. This book is about friendship, loyalty, betrayal, love, and coming of age in a confusing society. It was not what I expected at all and now I never pass by a book simply because it doesn't "look" like one I would enjoy. Reading The Lords of Discipline changed my view on that. Obviously, I simply can not say enough about this book - please read it - you won't be disappointed!