Hillbilly Elegy

asshole?—but it seemed an odd
emphasis for what felt like the most
important moment of a young career. Our
interviews weren’t so much about
grades or résumés, we were told; thanks
to a Yale Law pedigree, one foot was
already in the door. The interviews were
about passing a social test—a test of
belonging, of holding your own in a
corporate boardroom, of making
connections with potential future clients.
The most difficult test was the one I
wasn’t even required to take: getting an
audience in the first place. All week I
marveled at the ease of access to the
most esteemed lawyers in the country.
All of my friends had at least a dozen