It’s the Little Things
There is a distinct moment I remember from my high school days that, while seemingly insignificant, is the reason I have always valued the humanities and humanities courses throughout my college experience. I was walking to a restaurant to meet a friend for lunch nearby my high school when a Taiwanese couple stopped me and asked for directions to a famous pond nearby. I could tell that they could not understand my instructions, so I tried my best to tell them the directions in Chinese, given my limited knowledge studying Chinese in school. Afterwards, they were very appreciative, smiled, and gave me a nod before being on their way, but this small moment made me recognize that the skills I was learning in my math, science, and computer science courses, while valuable, would rarely grant me such an experience.
My knowledge of Chinese, a foreign language and therefore a part of the humanities, was necessary for this moment to be memorable. If I had been unable to help the couple, I would have been disappointed with myself.
Spring 2014
Soravit Sophastienphong, 21, Undergraduate at Duke University
the-little-things
The Role of the Individual versus an Intellectual Aristocracy
Why is this a Humanities Moment? Hesse wasn’t the only author of modernist alienation I read as a teenager, but I use him to illustrate this point because years later, another of his books again explained an important moment in my life. Three years ago, I became involved in efforts to bring philosophical education outside of the academy. I had been teaching high school philosophy for years, and was shocked to learn that there were whole organizations devoted to pre-college philosophy, and that people were doing philosophy with elementary and even pre-K students. Around this time, I read the Hesse novel <em>The Glass Bead Game</em> (Magister Ludi) for the first time. Although dull at times in its abstraction, the novel raises prescient points that Humanities education is still struggling with 50 years after its publication. In short, the novel describes a future world where monasteries and colleges have essentially fused, and a wildly abstract game, the Glass Bead Game attempts to unify all of the fields of human learning. Importantly, Castalia, where the game is played, steadfastly refuses to engage with the world outside -- intellectual pursuit literally has become a walled-off game. In the year 2017, especially, it seems crucial to find a way to explore the socially critical functions of Humanities thinking while avoiding the elitism that has led so many people to even reject the idea of a shared truth. The question -- how to bring a Humanities education and its expansion of perspective to all?
Choosing a Humanities Moment was initially a challenging task. Over the last few years working with the organization PLATO (Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization), I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the humanities, liberal arts and a philosophical education. In particular, the so-called crisis of the Humanities, the popularity of STEM fields and the blossoming of a national testing regime prompted me to think a lot about what a good education should entail. In thinking back to my own education, my Humanities Moment both shows the power and challenges of what could be called a liberal arts perspective. I attended a high school run by the Department of Defense in Heidelberg, West Germany due to my father’s job in the government service. From the start, I was culturally and politically alienated from my peers. Having lived in Germany for years, I not only had scant knowledge of recent American culture, but also had a much different perspective. Initially, I could only feel the alienation to be a shortcoming of my own. However, in the summer between 9th and 10th grade, I discovered Hermann Hesse, in particular, the novel <em>Demian</em>. The novel, a classic Bildungsroman, discusses a young student’s coming to see beyond the illusions and falsehoods of the society around him. This novel struck me with tremendous power at the time. Along with other novels of this sort, it showed me a fundamental ideal of the Humanities -- the same set of facts or experiences can can have more than one meaning -- perspectivalism. It took me awhile to come to understand all of this, but as a shy 15 year old, it gave me emotional fortitude and encouragement. Unfortunately, it also gave me a nascent sense of elitism. It didn’t just validate my feelings, but suggested the idea of an intellectual aristocracy I could potentially be a member of. As the member of the special club of those who “got it”, it suggested my experiences were superior. Later, in college, exposure to Kant, Aristotle and other very challenging philosophers introduced humility. If there was a special club, surely I couldn’t be a part of it!<br /><br />Why is this a Humanities Moment? Hesse wasn’t the only author of modernist alienation I read as a teenager, but I use him to illustrate this point because years later, another of his books again explained an important moment in my life. Three years ago, I became involved in efforts to bring philosophical education outside of the academy. I had been teaching high school philosophy for years, and was shocked to learn that there were whole organizations devoted to pre-college philosophy, and that people were doing philosophy with elementary and even pre-K students. Around this time, I read the Hesse novel <em>The Glass Bead Game</em> (<em>Magister Ludi</em>) for the first time. Although dull at times in its abstraction, the novel raises prescient points that Humanities education is still struggling with 50 years after its publication. In short, the novel describes a future world where monasteries and colleges have essentially fused, and a wildly abstract game, <em>The Glass Bead Game</em> attempts to unify all of the fields of human learning. Importantly, Castalia, where the game is played, steadfastly refuses to engage with the world outside -- intellectual pursuit literally has become a walled-off game. In the year 2017, especially, it seems crucial to find a way to explore the socially critical functions of Humanities thinking while avoiding the elitism that has led so many people to even reject the idea of a shared truth. The question -- how to bring a Humanities education and its expansion of perspective to all?
Hesse, Hermann
<em>Demian</em> and <em>The Glass Bead Game</em>
1984
<a href="http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/education-programs/teacher-advisory-council-2017-2018/">Stephen Miller</a>, 48, Philosophy Teacher
the-role-of-the-individual
Spaces & Stories: Kent State
Stephen Kidd recalls a trip to Kent State University that he made as a high school student while growing up in Ohio. This visit to the site of the 1970 Kent State shootings provided a greater historical context to an event that had cleaved his home state several years prior. For Kidd, the campus tour crystallized the connection between physical spaces and the stories that surround them.
A high-school trip to Kent State University
Stephen Kidd, Executive Director, National Humanities Alliance
stephen-kidd-kent-state
Growing Up with the Humanities
Building on their shared love of Shakespeare, Horowitz’s mother taught her daughter how the act of writing can cultivate ideas, prompt questions, and nurture a deeper appreciation for literature. In this light, Horowitz reflects on how the practice of reading and writing about works such as <em>King Lear</em> and <em>As You Like It</em> provided an opportunity to engage with the world in a meaningful way.
Mirah Horowitz describes the lessons imparted from her mother, an English professor, on reading and writing as ongoing practices of critical inquiry. Building on their shared love of Shakespeare, Horowitz’s mother taught her daughter how the act of writing can cultivate ideas, prompt questions, and nurture a deeper appreciation for literature. In this light, Horowitz reflects on how the practice of reading and writing about works such as <em>King Lear</em> and <em>As You Like It</em> provided an opportunity to engage with the world in a meaningful way.
William Shakespeare's <em>As You Like It</em> and <em>King Lear</em>
Mirah Horowitz, Russell Reynolds Associates
mirah-horowitz-growing-up-with-humanities