News
“Being a New Zealander... and the accidental search of the humanities.”
17 December 2007
| Byline: | Anna Wu Epsom |
|---|---|
| Source: | Humanities Research Network |
Anna Wu Epsom's essay was recently Highly Commended in the inaugural Council for the Humanities writing competition for Year 12 and 13 secondary school students on the topic, "Being a New Zealander".
N.B.: This blog is fictional but in accurate blog-style, it is also in reverse chronological order (most-recent-first)
www.longwhitethoughtcloud.blogspot.com
blog title: Get thee to a ministry
Ironically, there is ambiguity here too. By ministry I mean a government department as opposed to a clergy. Yes, inspired by my exploration of humanities, get me to a ministry! I think I might help Helen govern. So I'm not even 18 and voting yet -yet I am thinking of a career in diplomacy.
Bear in mind I have wanted to (on a quirk) dance after So You Think You Can Dance (guilty feeling I've got no rhythm), model after America's Next Top Model (I am vertically-challenged), and cook after Top Chef (I have culinary tastes equivalent to Napoleon's)... Perhaps I'll settle then on being an excellent democratic citizen. And think about lending my mind to humanities education at university. For the study of the humanities is enduring, and always evolving.
Although it isn't always valued so much by people - fondly dubbed as being an acronym for 'Bugger All' - the BA needs to be taken by a some of the rising young population.
Posted 8 July 2007 at 8:58pm
blog title: The ppl who work the land
The CAP - Common Agricultural Policy - in the EU - European Union - has been unkind to our farmers in NZ. The EU market has import tariffs imposed on NZ farmers while EU food is subsidised. In short, our butter isn't spreading there as much as we'd like to.
-Eh? What's this to do with the current blogging train of thought?
Being a New Zealander means thinking for other New Zealanders too as we're all in the economy together.
The EU acknowledges globalisation "produces winners and losers", but will the meat - literally - of New Zealand exports continue to be denied effective trade in the market in Europe because of the EC's - European Commission - CAP? This is an issue that will have to be dealt with by next generation (since the EU itself is still evolving and will be for much time).
I think (given the awesome force of globalization to be reckoned with) that it's about time economics got accepted on par with history in humanities.
Posted 4 July 2007 at 9:01pm
blog title: Fine citizen
In our communities, business, and personal everyday lives...
we need people
to think
to reason
to communicate coherently, successfully
we need people
who can understand
the intricacy of problems and
who think in long term; beyond a "quick fix"
who are willing to question the things taken-for-granted
who view recognize and review the implications of choices; who are
resourceful, creative
open-minded; imaginative
in a critical kind of way...
- the humanities cultivate these people!
Posted 1 July 2007 at 3:12pm
blog title: Humanities in Aotearoa
If "from one point of view, any community in which a majority of the adult population were slaves cannot be considered democratic" and we must keep "majority rule and minority rights" in mind, then cannot govern ourselves wisely or well without educated, critically-thinking minds making up the majority.
We need the humanities. Without them we are the land of a long void [thought] cloud.
If humanities were treasured in Aotearoa, it would be a place where passions, intellects and curiosity were allowed to run wild. A place where
skills were improved; culture celebrated; things taken-for-granted challenged; different point-of-views heard and respected
We do have those things, but to perpetuate this ideal place we need the up-and-coming generations to think about and respond to the world using the tools already acquired and built upon thus far. With humanities study as a tool we can reflect upon our lives, ask questions critically - what is right or corrupt - and potentially put forward changes for improvement.
Democracy depends on the humanities and they enhance our personal lives. What does it mean to be human? Philosophic questions like this can be considered in the context of literature, history, the arts and so on.
After all, in Hamlet did the soliloquy not mention "mortal coil" - the business of humanity? I am human, therefore I must think! And analyse a la Hamlet.
Posted 29 June 2007 at 3:25pm
blog title: Shakespeare and "other languages"
In English class we study Shakespeare because Shakespeare is synonymous with literature in the English curriculum.
Literature at university and beyond is the study of some the other great interpreters of human life through time - eras - and space - countries.
Writers and other creative artists may do to what they do best and apply onto paper/canvas/blog historical observations for future generations studying humanities. Therefore it makes sense that language, dance, and other arty stuff also ducks under the wide umbrella of humanities. The humanities are about using words and language. Be it fiction, essay writing, speech-making, everyday conversations, formal philosophical writing, journalism, or reports. Or even poetically speaking, the language of dance, theatre, music.
Globalization, of economic, social, and political interactions in the world has heightened the importance of being earnest. Nah, just kidding.
The importance of being able to communicate in more than one language. That way it is easier to understand history as communicated by people around the world.
Memo to New Zealand: are you picking this up? Did you know that by 1998 virtually all pupils in Europe studied at least one foreign language as part of their compulsory education?
Posted 22 June 2007 at 7:15pm
blog title: A philosophical debate
You know how school teachers always like to say (when no one wants to put up their hand): "There's no right or wrong answer."
Guess what? They're absolutely right!
In the study of philosophy, it's about how you argue your point of view.
Therefore, philosophy is a great subject to assist those skills in the debating chamber.
Did that sound convincing?
Posted 21 June 2007 at 6:23pm
blog title: To smack or not to smack?
Is smacking inhumane? It is likely that both 'humane' and 'humanities' are derived from the same Latin root, 'humanitas, from humanus,' meaning human.
Random fact: In Spain, Latin is a compulsory subject for all those who study humanities in grades 11 and 12. In Greece, Latin is compulsory for students who intend to study humanities, and is one of the six subjects tested in Greek examinations for entry into humanities University courses.
Although I don't think smacking has much to do with the humanities; it’s just politics. But they do study political studies under the heading 'humanities', don't they?
Posted 17 June 2007 at 4:27pm
blog title: History goes down in history
Culture today was shaped yesterday. You know how fashion magazines have kept banging on about mod style (from the 60s), go-go boots (70s), graphic prints and stovepipes (80s), oversized tee-shirts (grungy 90s thanks to Mr Kurt Cobain)? That's what I mean - always look to the past for a new hit on the runway. Retro is the new modern.
The development of facts and literature of years gone by have impacted on us as a society. To handle present and then tackle the future, we must get the past under our belt first. Studying humanities, which works on analytical and communication skills, can let us -uh- use those very skills to analyse and communicate historical information into understanding.
The word 'history' is derived from the Greek 'historia' - 'to question' and so history could be considered as analysing the credibility of what people did in history and why. The other important skill acquired during the study of humanities is then used to communicate the conclusions.
Recognizing conflicting interpretations of history also occurs in the process of humanities studies. Cultures of the past are mirrored by artists. Take Hollywood generated teenage drama 'The OC'. If future generations were to only study literature, they might interpret that all teenagers have good skin and are overtly melodramatic. Unfortunately, studying history would set them onto the closer truth that only 25-year-old actors can manage roles of kids with unclogged pores, and that most real teens led low-profile lives. Facts of the past - like real school yearbooks - flicked through when understanding literature of the past.
Put in study of linguistics and they’ll even learn how youthful slang evolved from 'that's grand' to 'that's cool' and then, most recently thanks to Paris Hilton, 'that's hot'. Therefore, the humanities reveal how different disciplines influence and complement one another.
Posted 10 June 2007 at 6:30pm
blog title: Evolution: times they are a-changing
5 millennia ago, some Taiwanese boarded a waka and cruised to Aotearoa, land of the long white cloud, and are now better known as Maori. That's according to scientists at Victoria University in Wellington who employed DNA technology, radio carbon and computer simulations. Crash course in anthropology for ya.
So I didn't come here with the first lot, but my passport still reads nationality: 'New Zealand' and ethnicity: 'Taiwanese'.
The face of [the pie chart of ethnicity in] New Zealand is now [multi-]coloured. In other food terms, we are a melting pot of exotic spices. For diversity is the spice of life.
New Zealand is now home to many cultures and therefore this 'humanities in Aotearoa'; thing applies to all of us. But which definition of 'humanities' to follow?...
Posted 5 June 2007
blog title: (untitled)
Humanity - n, pl. -ities. 1. human race. 2. the quality of being human. 3. kindness or mercy.
Humanities - pl. 4. study of literature, philosophy, and the arts.
The humanities are often defined as a group of academic disciplines that use historical and interpretive rather than quantitative methods.
Humanities: branches of learning that deal with human thought and culture, excluding the sciences. The term originally applied to the study of literatures of classical Greece and Rome - 'humanism'. It has since expanded to cover all languages and literature, the arts, history and philosophy.
'Humanism' is the Renaissance literary cult of "New Learning" a revival of Greek and Roman studies. Studies of classics were believed the highest expression of human values and a means to developing the free, responsible individual.
Right, what are we waiting for?
Posted 2 June 2007 at 3:14pm
