The Value of a Humanities Degree

Amid the clamor this past year surrounding the crisis in the humanities, the voices of two groups—colleges and professors—have dominated the debate. Some say the humanities are saving students; others say humanities students are wasting their time and money on their degrees. Only occasionally mentioned in those arguments are the students themselves. So what do [...]

Liberal Arts I: They Keep Chugging Along – Inside Higher Ed

Mark Twain once remarked that reports of his death were greatly exaggerated. The liberal arts disciplines, it seems, can say the same thing. The on-the-ground stories back up the statistics and reinforce the idea that the liberal arts are not dying, despite the soft job market and the recent recession. Majors are steady, enrollments are [...]

Liberal Arts II: The Economy Requires Them – Inside Higher Ed

Many of us committed to the liberal arts have been defensive for as long as we can remember. We have all cringed when we have heard a version of the following joke: The graduate with a science degree asks, “Why does it work?”; the graduate with an engineering degree asks, “How does it work?”; the [...]

The Humanities for Love, Not Money

Continuing education programs across the country are finding students increasingly focused on the arts and humanities, whether for new careers or to re-explore great authors. WHEN the renowned educators Mortimer J. Adler and Robert Maynard Hutchins first decided to expand their Great Books course beyond the University of Chicago’s walls, they recruited some of Chicago’s [...]

Great Conversations Lecture Series – Big Visions

Our popular Great Conversations series continues with a new theme! This autumn and winter, we invite some of the University’s most exciting, creative minds to share their visions of the future of our city and of the world. Our discussions will consider such topics as the changing shape of education, how to build a sustainable [...]

A Genuine Liberal Education

Views: Only English Spoken October 26, 2009 By Dan Edelstein When the young François-Marie Arouet was a student at the Jesuit collège Louis-le-Grand in 18th-century Paris, he spent many of his classroom hours studying Latin, along with a little ancient Greek. Had he ventured over to the nearby Collège Royal, today the Collège de France, [...]

Salman Rushdie – Machiavelli’s Bad Rap

Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2008/06/18/A…Award-winning novelist Salman Rushdie discusses Niccolo Machiavelli, arguing that the infamous Italian political philosopher does not deserve the … more about “Salman Rushdie – Machiavelli’s Bad Rap“, posted with vodpod

Allan Bloom on Plato’s Apology of Socrates 1

This is a lecture on the portico to the Platonic corpus. It is also partly a discussion with several very informed professors from Harvard and Boston College who participated in this series, for wh… more about “Allan Bloom on Plato’s Apology of Soc…“, posted with vodpod

Allan Bloom on Plato’s Apology of Socrates 2

This is part 2 of 18 segments to be placed on YouTube. more about “Allan Bloom on Plato’s Apology of Soc…“, posted with vodpod

Allan Bloom on Plato’s Apology of Socrates 3

more about “Allan Bloom on Plato’s Apology of Soc…“, posted with vodpod

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