Justification of Humanities Essay Example for Free

Justification of Humanities EssayThe liberal arts have been studied since ancient Grecian times as an academic discipline, examining human frame and including the arts, literature, philosophy, annals and some social sciences. In 2008, nationally recognized and respected literary theorist Stanley Fish wrote a New York Times article in response to a New York State Commission on Higher Education report in which people posted complaints that the liberal arts are forever and a day the last to be financially funded. Fish sums up his argument with an insulting conclusive statement To the question of what accustom are humanities? , the only reasonable answer is none whatsoever. He backs up this claim by pointing out the lack of evident evidence that is produced by humanities compared to science and opposite fields. I assert that Fish underestimates the power of the intangible benefits that the humanities have to offer. His overall argument a fetchst the value of humanities present s a point-of-view that is extreme, reductive, and insulting to anyone associated with the humanities and the battlefield of them. An education involving the study of humanities enables readers with skills that are applicable in understanding and comprehending contemporary media and literature.Literature, for that matter, effects people morally and possibly behaviorally and that effect, positive or negative, is of use. Narrative literature and historical texts also allow readers to build a bridge and connect with the past and its people. The media has become an inevitable part of our society directly and, unfortunately, media manipulation has as well. Public relations companies and the government have hidden agendas that the journalists blindly incorporate into their stories and columns. People are paid to make the American everyday perceive pictures and articles in a deceitful, false way in order to sell a war or downplay a disaster.In 1996 conjuration Rendon, the founder of The Rendon Group, a public relations firm, admitted to U. S. Air Force cadets that the Gulf War in Iraq had been a big project for his company. He even talked close to generating deceiving photographs Looking back in history with with(predicate) other conflicts (i. e. , Vietnam, Iraq), or political issues or even stories of famous individuals, we can observe many situations alike(p) to what Rendon explained that supports a recurring complaint in our culture, whether provable or non, that the press will print stories without evidence if they make more money in the process.Specifically, the media reporting after the 911 attacks were constant and focused on Osama bin Laden as the mastermind behind the attacks and on Iraq having weapons of mass destruction as they were told by authorities. Pro-war sources were disproportionately focused on over anti-war sources which helped build misguided public support for our war on terrorism and on Iraq. But we now know WMDs were not in existence there, but this shows the power of media stories, no matter whether based on fact, and its ability to influence society and the power it can take outside from us by eliminating fully-informed decision-making.By being exposed to manipulating and deceiving narrators such as Lolitas Humbert Humbert and Holden Caulfield in The Catcher In the Rye, students gain experience in signal detection this fraudulence or bias. Also, through involvement with this type of reading and writing, the ability to sense when they are being propagandized or manipulated. An education that includes humanities provides tools for people to consciously keep from falling for the bias and hidden slander that is involved, specially with politics.This awareness can cause better decision-making (voting especially) and affect a persons mentation very greatly. Exposure to humanities can cause people to be less egocentric and can arm them with a point-of-view that will help them protrude through narrow-minded opini ons and statements, like Fishs, and develop their own sound, fact-based and well-rounded opinions. Fish also comments in his article, What do they humanities do? They dont do anything, if by do is meant bring about effects in the adult male.This claim is resting upon the questionable understanding that the do is supposed to yield a tangible product, a constant misconception Fish downms to have. I am arguing that an effect on a person, positive or negative, implies that something was done to have caused that effect. Fish himself names many examples of literature affecting its readers he just chooses to discard them and remain skeptical. Countless examples have affected millions of people. Rachel Carsons Silent Spring is commonly assign for the launch of the environmental awareness movement.The Bible itself is a form of literature, and I am sure that Stanley Fish cannot argue that The Bible has not affected the world Dr. Seuss books affect children and adults all over the world wi th their simple yet effective messages through the creative rhyming. The Food and Drug Administration was founded as a latter(prenominal) result to Sinclairs The Jungle, and I believe that this would be considered an example of doing something, even according to Fish. Books, and all forms of art, can cause people to reflect on the plot, the characters, or the good questions being pondered in the story.We can contemplate character attributes we appreciate or reject and watch scenarios unfold in books that can be comparable to(predicate) to situations in our own lives. Fish believes it is not the business of the humanities to save us, but I do believe an education in humanities can help us save us from the worst of ourselves by helping us become more well-rounded citizens with an understanding of the past so we can head effectively and productively into the future. I agree with Kronman who Fish quotes as saying a college was above all a place for the rearing of character.This compl etely supports an intelligent quote by Martin Luther King Jr. King said, Intelligence plus characterthat is the true goal of education. Without any humanities incorporated in a persons education, can this goal be fully achieved? The renowned Spanish-American essayist George Santayana said, Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to reiterate it, and I cannot agree more with this claim. It highlights the importance of an education in history, another branch of the humanities discipline.Having a connection and understanding with the past allows us to gain appreciation for the world today and learn from the mistakes made through history, so those mistakes are not repeated. For example, the very foundation of Americas government was created through utilizing documentations of various governments implemented through history The founding fathers sifted through accounts of different governments and how successful they were and used them to form the Constitution.For example, they applied the system of checks and reliefs in order balance power among the braches and stray from the way that Britains monarchy was established. Books and the arts used to be mans sole form of entertainment and it is amazing to read the thoughts and see the creations of a person from so long ago Narrative literature, especially from the past, allows us to delve into the mindset of someone from a different time, and that is something that no history book can teach.The readings assigned in humanities classes expand students knowledge of life and morality from a different time period and examines why this ethical mindset existed in the historical context. We reflect and compare the morals of those in the past to our own, making connections with the past yet also seeing the development of ethics and moral behavior through time. Teachings in humanities can be directly applied to the commercial culture that is present in our society today, especially with the deceitful and biased influ ences in the media.Literature has direct effects on us on an emotional, ethical and logical level and the connection that is made through books with the past is undoubtedly one of the most helpful insights of the past. Fishs argument was immature and was based merely on tangible products, a narrow-minded viewpoint that overlooks the power of thought and the mind My contrasting opinion defends the impalpable and in that sense, suggests humanities can contribute to improving a reader in person and potentially benefit the future of society greatly.