Selling out

So thus far my summer has consisted, in large part, of revising a seminar paper from the last Fall semester into an article that I can actually send out. Hence, a lot of my attention has been directed towards self-presentation and learning how to "sell" myself and my work on the academic market. Obviously, working in academe is a job and it demands a certain amount of practicality and politicking. However I worry when I find myself more concerned about landing an article in the right venue or snagging a job at the ideal university than about the content of my work.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I fear that the trappings of academic culture may overrun my intellectual commitments. It seems awfully easy to no longer believe that one's work and ideas matter or to believe that they only matter insofar as they can demonstrate one's professional importance. I'm not going to lie: I want the prestige. Who doesn't? But I don't want the desire for prestige to cloud the beliefs and commitments that drew me into academe to begin with.