Thanks for writing about what I, and many others, find distressing. I think those of us who are observant see the consequences of this particular kind of “dumbing down” daily, not to mention the consequences of so many public figures belittling a broad education, or showing no evidence of having one despite multiple degrees, e,g,, Ron DeSanits, a loud, boor and bully with a Harvard and Yale credentials. I fear it’s a problem
We have indeed a frightening problem. The devaluation of deep thinking and deep reading, anything that requires time, is only getting worse. There were so many points in Heller’s article that I didn’t even touch on in my short piece, but the context that the broader education the humanities and other fields can provide are indeed being belittled and receiving less funding. Real knowledge has and will always threaten those who want to control by force rather than wisdom or individual consideration.
In my small universe, NYC, the problem seems hard, but not impossible, to reverse. Most public school students are reading below low-bar proficiency levels in fourth and, again, in eighth grades. They are almost illiterate. Still, all efforts to broaden young people matter. I know you know and live that. As someone not born to privilege of any kind, I particularly identify with girls with similar backgrounds, and am involved with Girls Inc. of New York. I’ll soon be scoring essays they write as part of applying for Girls Inc. college scholarships. Each small step …
This essay nicely sums the recent history of the decline of becoming an English major—for which I was one. A well-rounded background in the arts and humanities requires one to be analytical, which was instrumental in my success on the job to achieve a series of promotions, ultimately, to Director of News Operations at CBS News during 9/11. For 20 years I was able to connect with writers and producers understanding instantly what they wanted to produce. Moreover, self-studies in astronomy and physics allowed collaboration on expeditions, grant proposals and documentary films with solar physicists, and astronomers around the world.
I remember that lengthy NYU book buying list, too, and fellow alumni at NYU Tisch School of the Arts film school, Vince Gilligan and Thomas Schnauz, the creators and writers of “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul,” kept at their English literature reading while studying screenwriting on our Greenwich Village campus. Unfortunately, perhaps because of its empirical nature, misinformation connecting financial success by way of study through business school, or science, takes a lead over the analytical (and human) nature required in the study of literature, language and writing. This shortsightedness is quite prevalent when students choose their education path.
It can take a lifetime to understand the value of the humanities and philosophy—and often billionaires subtly admit this void in their twilight years —but if one achieves riches without such study, it is likely they will fill their bucket with a library of English literature from the same syllabi that I was given 40 years ago. 😊📚
Thanks for writing about what I, and many others, find distressing. I think those of us who are observant see the consequences of this particular kind of “dumbing down” daily, not to mention the consequences of so many public figures belittling a broad education, or showing no evidence of having one despite multiple degrees, e,g,, Ron DeSanits, a loud, boor and bully with a Harvard and Yale credentials. I fear it’s a problem
without a near term solution.. You?
We have indeed a frightening problem. The devaluation of deep thinking and deep reading, anything that requires time, is only getting worse. There were so many points in Heller’s article that I didn’t even touch on in my short piece, but the context that the broader education the humanities and other fields can provide are indeed being belittled and receiving less funding. Real knowledge has and will always threaten those who want to control by force rather than wisdom or individual consideration.
In my small universe, NYC, the problem seems hard, but not impossible, to reverse. Most public school students are reading below low-bar proficiency levels in fourth and, again, in eighth grades. They are almost illiterate. Still, all efforts to broaden young people matter. I know you know and live that. As someone not born to privilege of any kind, I particularly identify with girls with similar backgrounds, and am involved with Girls Inc. of New York. I’ll soon be scoring essays they write as part of applying for Girls Inc. college scholarships. Each small step …
This essay nicely sums the recent history of the decline of becoming an English major—for which I was one. A well-rounded background in the arts and humanities requires one to be analytical, which was instrumental in my success on the job to achieve a series of promotions, ultimately, to Director of News Operations at CBS News during 9/11. For 20 years I was able to connect with writers and producers understanding instantly what they wanted to produce. Moreover, self-studies in astronomy and physics allowed collaboration on expeditions, grant proposals and documentary films with solar physicists, and astronomers around the world.
I remember that lengthy NYU book buying list, too, and fellow alumni at NYU Tisch School of the Arts film school, Vince Gilligan and Thomas Schnauz, the creators and writers of “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul,” kept at their English literature reading while studying screenwriting on our Greenwich Village campus. Unfortunately, perhaps because of its empirical nature, misinformation connecting financial success by way of study through business school, or science, takes a lead over the analytical (and human) nature required in the study of literature, language and writing. This shortsightedness is quite prevalent when students choose their education path.
It can take a lifetime to understand the value of the humanities and philosophy—and often billionaires subtly admit this void in their twilight years —but if one achieves riches without such study, it is likely they will fill their bucket with a library of English literature from the same syllabi that I was given 40 years ago. 😊📚