The Humanities in Crisis: What Went Wrong and How to Restore Their Centrality in our Daily Lives (The Humanities in 2015: Ch. 1)

Sheets, Diana

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/54916 Copy

Description

Title

The Humanities in Crisis: What Went Wrong and How to Restore Their Centrality in our Daily Lives (The Humanities in 2015: Ch. 1)

Author(s)

Sheets, Diana

Issue Date

2014

Keyword(s)

• humanities
• western civilization
• liberal arts

Abstract

Over the past 50 years student enrollments in the liberal arts at colleges and universities has plummeted. Our current crisis in the humanities received considerable attention in 2013 with the publication of several influential reports including—―Mapping the Future‖, ―The Heart of the Matter‖, and ―What Does Bowdoin Teach?‖—as well as one major conference—―A New Deal for the Humanities‖—devoted to the importance of public institutions of higher education in sustaining the liberal arts. However, except for the Bowdoin report, no attempt has been made to address the root cause of the malaise, which is the eradication of academic excellence founded in the Western canon by the imposition of ―social justice‖.This paper defines the humanities. It examines the subject from a historical perspective. It demonstrates how the curriculum, presently saturated in politics and almost devoid of academic content, lies at the root of the problem. Revitalization of the humanities means understanding our history and the innovations that nurture greatness. The liberal arts must work in partnership with the social sciences, business, and the engineering and mathematical sciences to provide students with an education grounded in academic excellence and founded upon an appreciation of Western civilization.

Publisher

Nova Science Publishers, Inc.

Type of Resource

text

Language

en

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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/54916

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