tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post5901250246773134980..comments2024-03-10T20:46:19.274-04:00Comments on In the Middle: A Defense of the HumanitiesCord J. Whitakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06224143153295429986noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post-81334750210272710942009-03-20T14:43:00.001-04:002009-03-20T14:43:00.001-04:00Thanks for posting this. I'm busily disseminating...Thanks for posting this. I'm busily disseminating via FB now, hoping a conversation can arise.<BR/><BR/>I'm also impressed with the fact that he doesn't shy away from a Marxist/postmodern reading. This was one of the more important lines for me: "But I feel on firm ground in saying that any discipline that studies human behavior without taking human beings into account must be leaving something out." <BR/><BR/>Numbers don't tell the whole story, nor does our philosophy. I would think we would want as broad a perspective as possible right now.Rick Goddenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04109263756022001400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post-64144392100349701942009-03-20T13:46:00.000-04:002009-03-20T13:46:00.000-04:00Yes to both. Defenses of the humanities are easy t...Yes to both. <BR/><BR/>Defenses of the humanities are easy to come by: <A HREF="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/25/books/25human.html?_r=2&scp=1&sq=In%20Tough%20Times,%20Humanities%20Must%20Justify%20Their%20Worth&st=cse" REL="nofollow">here</A> is another recent one, for example. Too often, though, these defenses begin with a concession that the humanities have created their own bed of misery through a love of esoteric and highfalutin theory, then urge a back to basics approach that makes it seem as though the past few decades taught nothing of particular worth. <BR/><BR/>What I like about Harpham's piece is that he feels no need to do adopt this easy rhetoric -- just the opposite. His defense (which is ultimately a Marxist one) is based upon insights about the imagination and value that have been part of some very important conversations in the academy for quite some time. I like that his starting point is that these conversations have moved us to a place that has enabled more penetrating discussion of the crisis we face.Jeffrey Cohenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17346504393740520542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post-7823264308108209082009-03-20T11:21:00.000-04:002009-03-20T11:21:00.000-04:00So, Jeffrey, are you impressed by/ interested in t...So, Jeffrey, are you impressed by/ interested in the article because it talks about how the Humanities help people function in today's world or because it's not against theory? The former seems to me the bigger issue, while the latter is simply a tiny bit of the argument.Matthew Gabrielehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11971159578332078338noreply@blogger.com