Why We Learn the Humanities in a STEM-Smothered Age

Summary

The article argues for the continued relevance and importance of studying the humanities in an era dominated by STEM and technological advancements.

Abstract

In an age where technological feats often overshadow the humanities, the article emphasizes that the study of literature, history, philosophy, and the arts remains crucial to our understanding of human existence and emotional world. It acknowledges the societal shift towards prioritizing STEM education and the resulting perception that humanities degrees offer limited career prospects. However, the author contends that the humanities are not merely abstract; they are practical in providing depth to our lives, questioning our purpose, and preserving our humanity amidst rapid technological change. The article suggests that the humanities offer a connection to our past, a means to navigate the complexities of the present, and a perspective on the future, all of which are irreplaceable by science and technology.

Opinions

The author expresses concern over the popular bias that favors STEM over the humanities, which is reflected in the perceived lack of opportunities for humanities graduates.
There is a defensive tone in the author's love for the humanities, implying a need to justify their value in the face of a STEM-focused society.
The article posits that the humanities are a source of emotional resonance and introspection, providing a counterbalance to the impersonal nature of technology.
It is suggested that the humanities (e.g., Plato's works, historical texts like "Guns, Germs, and Steel," and dystopian literature like "1984") are essential for understanding the human condition and our place in the world.
The author believes that the humanities are not just a relic of the past but a living, breathing component of our identity that helps us to critically examine and shape our future.

When technology erodes the boundaries of what we once thought was imaginable, the humanities feel more and more distant.

We live in an age of spectacles, one smothered by works of innovation. The ever-growing speed of wireless communications, the emergence of computers giving us the comfort of working from home, or the astronomical discoveries that made sending humans into space a fantasy no more — all these superhuman feats beaming because of scientific, edge-cutting advancements.

Yet, as we marvel at the greatness wrought by technology, we cannot help but ponder: “Why do we still need the humanities?”

And in asking that, we are not alone.

As Valerie Strauss, an education reporter for The Washington Post, sets the reality in her rebuttal against neglecting the humanities, we are “in the era of big data and STEM,” where earning a degree in the humanities leaves people with no opportunity “besides teach[ing].”

As somebody who loves the fascinations of our past, the fine touches of literature, or the thought-poking philosophical theories, this popular bias, for me, was something difficult to come to terms with. After all, the humanities were not something more abstract than pragmatic, but, quite the opposite, a myriad of pieces making up the emotional world surrounding us — a blessing not even the most advanced of sciences or technologies could give.

Overwhelmed in this world by the pungent presence of technology, we long for company in the austerity of history. Owned by the ripples of unending scenes swelling our pace of life, we embrace the stillness of words. Words, tarnished by its delicate appearance, resting so burdensome in the face of a burgeoning digital age.

Dejected, we turn to the humanities.

Swimming through Plato’s Theory of the Forms or mulling over his Allegory of the Cave, we question the purpose of our very existence and seek an indefinite direction in life. Flipping through the pages of Guns, Germs, and Steel or tapping right on texts of Sapiens on Kindle, we stroll through millions of years of human existence, times long before the fiction of technology came about. Toiling in the year of 1984 and rallying around the fire before Things Fall Apart, we lament the near apathetic cruelty of a veiled civilization as we look upon a future so foreign yet all too familiar.

If we look back at our inquiry, the answer lies in the question itself. We learn the humanities because we’re humans in nature. We share the capacity of emotions stirred and soothed by works of the humanities just as we look toward the future we lay with technology. For when we shift our gazes to the mere ecstasies of today, we overlook the bricks and tiles that forged our paths yesterday.

Technology may transform our ways of life, but the humanities preserve the very human in us.

Works Cited

Powell, Jessica. “Don’t Let Your Children Become Insufferable Poets.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 18 Nov. 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/11/18/opinion/future-humanities-science-education.html.

“Why Study Humanities?” Academics at the University of Minnesota, Morris, 6 Oct. 2015, academics.morris.umn.edu/humanities-division/why-study-humanities.