The humanities are everywhere. But they are so interwoven into our daily lives that we often miss them.
Sometimes, though, they surprise you.
A book you can’t put down. A photograph that haunts you. A song you can’t get out of your head.
The Humanities Moments Project was created to collect stories about how the humanities touch us, inspire us, and enrich our lives.
Featured Moment
The Perfect Invitation
by Patricia Matthew, 49, English professor living in Brooklyn, New York
Hearing Lucille Clifton’s poem “won’t you celebrate with me” at a celebration of her work is the Humanities Moment that offered both comfort and a model for how to navigate life as a Black academic. I was a new English professor and was unprepared for the isolation I…
Featured Exhibit
Celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
May marks Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. The month was chosen to honor the arrival of the first Japanese to the United States in 1843. It also commemorates the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad, largely built by Chinese immigrants, in...
Recently Added Moments
To Pimp A Butterfly
by Alex Azzi, Student at TAMU
Some would say music is the most powerful of the arts. The album To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar is just that, powerful. The overall theme of the album revolves around the black experience in America. This album is an emotional, gut wrenching roller coaster. With…
This couldn't happen to me.
by Madison Forrest, 18, student
This past year my aunt, my mother's sister, passed away very young at age 45. Her passing devastated my family and I. The thought that kept entering my head was there's no way this could happen to me. Tragedies, catastrophes, and other huge losses have never affected me so…
stars
by 22
Sitting in a large field in Leakey, Texas at night, I looked up and there were millions and millions of stars around me. I was awe struck about how small a human is, but how much knowledge we obtain.
Live with a humanities mindset!
by Kenneth, 20, student at Texas A&M university
As a society we are so often encouraged to go about our days in such a way that builds our own futures. This is great and all, but we need to think of the effects of always thinking of ourselves. This standard attitude of underhanded selfishness is so prevalent that seeing a…
The Abraham Lincoln Statue
by Lauren, 21, Student
While in my English class, we look at an image of the Lincoln Statue and it showed Lincoln's hand above the head of a former slave. This image is supposed to represent freedom, but to me, it represents the level at which people of color are limited to be.
Beyond Katrina and Harvey
by Jordan, 21, Student
In one of my English classes, we are currently reading through Beyond Katrina by Natasha Trethewey. I was very young when the storm hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast and I live far enough away, in Texas, to where no one I knew was affected. After the events of…
God wink
by Stephany Rankin, 22, Student at Texas A&M University
Today I went to Smoothie King after I left the gym, like I always do. As I neared the drive thru window, a little voice inside my head told me, "pay for the person's order behind you." Without hesitation, I handed the cashier my card and asked him to add the next person's…
“You don’t just run, you run to some place wonderful.”
by Deborah Ross, lawyer & politician
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler turned Deborah Ross’s world upside down. Kongisberg’s book, which just celebrated its 50th anniversary, chronicles the adventures of Claudia and her brother, who run away to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The…
The Second Shelf and Beyond
by Kathryn Hill, President, The Levine Museum of the New South
In elementary school, Kathryn Hill itched to move beyond the first shelf of the library books. When she finally reached the second shelf, a new world awaited her: biographies of historical figures. The lives of women such as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Harriet Tubman, and…
We All Float On
by Katie Clark, 21, Student
When I was a senior in high school, one of my friend's passed away from a tragic accident. My friend and I decided to attend the funeral together for comfort and support. I picked her up early that morning to shed our tears over him, and after spending some time with the…
Darkest Before the Dawn
by Natalie Huebel, 22 years old and a student at Texas A&M University.
Due to the oil and gas industry plummeting in 2016, my dad lost his job that he had for over 30 years, right before I was about to leave for college. I couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of guilt and anxiety for the duration of that summer. In addition…
The Best Motivational Token
by Melanie, 20, Psychology major
It was a late night on September 14th, and school was at an overwhelming high. My new organization had just kicked off so all of my time was completely taken over by it, I was behind on my chemistry homework and I hadn't even began studying for my psychology test that was…
Here I Am
by Sydney, 21, student
This might be a total Millennial generation kind of humanities moment, so readers be warned. One day, I was scrolling through social media when I came across a post from a wonderful calligraphy artist. It read, "and here you are living despite it all." The post reminded me…
Southern History, Turned Upside Down
by J. Porter Durham, Jr., General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer, Global Endowment Management, LP
J. Porter Durham, Jr. grew up in the segregated South during a time when public Ku Klux Klan sightings were not uncommon. In this video, Durham describes how a history class at Duke University taught by Lawrence Goodwyn upended his worldview. Professor Goodwyn’s book,…
Not Too Far Off
by Brian Finke, 21, Student at Texas A&M
While I was a teenager about to go off to college, I watched Death of a Salesman at the theater. At the time I was struggling with the transition I was about to embark on, but I found a deep connection to Biff's character. I felt like I was always running a never…