Article Summary 13: Humanities

Simpson, David. "The Humanities and the Crisis of Everything." UCDavis 18 Nov. 2009. Web. 28 Feb. 2010.

There are more connections between the humanities and science than there used to be, and a major factor is that they are both under attack. The article talks about the need for humanities to remain a strong force in Universities, and that alongside science it should be seen as a valuable education. The humanities deal with the bigger picture, the more difficult questions in life. Trying to explain what exactly that does for greater society is very difficult, but the author tries to break it down into five points. Those five points outline the idea that everything humanities majors do is still important, but it might not be noticeable right away. The work that is put into research and credibility are very important, and without the ability to find those voices from the past that have already spoken out there would be no way to create validity when dealing with future works. The need for a historical reference is important, and the humanities graduates are the ones who do the work to create that.

The author also connects the way that humanities majors work to the way scientists work. They both create ideas and work towards proving them, but sometimes not everything works out to be the exact ending you expected, and can be even better. There are reasons for that process to be valued in today’s society.