Thanks, Ji . I loved this. You really honored the graduates with so much respect for their minds, not only for their degrees but also to be able to follow your nuanced thinking in these excellent remarks. I can't help but think of my own college graduation 50 years ago; no one would have even considered addressing a liberal arts degree as anything but 100% appropriate to the world of work. As you so eloquently point out, those days are seemingly long gone.
I too favor Fagles "twists and turns," and doesn't that well describe a human life, not just the enigmatic Odysseus?
I didn’t want to go on about this but American higher education began as a place for those already privileged to gain a certain kind of literacy because those few were coming back likely to a lifetime family job or an assured future determined by class. (Think about the founding of the Ivy League schools.) Then the Morrill Act (1862) brought the land-grant universities that by location and curriculum meant to realize the benefits of education and economic advantage across the country. Post WWII brings tens of thousands of veterans who likely would have never attended college and by our generation the assumption that an education paid off was simply taken for granted. I would have stood no chance without the opportunity for an education that my parents did not have. Now that “pay off” is no longer the case—-and we could all see it coming when even Obama made fun of being an art history major. At current tuition rates even with discounts (aka scholarships) and loans (and fewer resources to encourage less privileged people), there are better economic choices in certain trades. Shall we add the resurgent (always-been-there) anti-intellectualism of American society and the obvious ramifications of a polarized and partisan politics? The consequences of a low-information electorate are all too plain to see. Is there a remedy? Higher education is clueless, floundering (but for the uber-rich institutions), and the more it is run like corporations the more we can expect that only money will matter. That is not a future I look forward to but there is little else on the horizon.
Summarised in one paragraph ! It’s the same in Australia - ‘education’ (learning to learn - to critique, to appraise) devalued. Get a trade - guaranteed income and security ,,
When I worked in higher education administration, the cry from donors was to make the universities, (I worked for more than one), run "more like a business." And they did. More's the pity. It's why I retired early. My wish for your new graduates is that they do remember your valediction and take it to heart. May they build a life of meaningful relationships. Sweetly done, Douglas!
Thanks, Ji . I loved this. You really honored the graduates with so much respect for their minds, not only for their degrees but also to be able to follow your nuanced thinking in these excellent remarks. I can't help but think of my own college graduation 50 years ago; no one would have even considered addressing a liberal arts degree as anything but 100% appropriate to the world of work. As you so eloquently point out, those days are seemingly long gone.
I too favor Fagles "twists and turns," and doesn't that well describe a human life, not just the enigmatic Odysseus?
I didn’t want to go on about this but American higher education began as a place for those already privileged to gain a certain kind of literacy because those few were coming back likely to a lifetime family job or an assured future determined by class. (Think about the founding of the Ivy League schools.) Then the Morrill Act (1862) brought the land-grant universities that by location and curriculum meant to realize the benefits of education and economic advantage across the country. Post WWII brings tens of thousands of veterans who likely would have never attended college and by our generation the assumption that an education paid off was simply taken for granted. I would have stood no chance without the opportunity for an education that my parents did not have. Now that “pay off” is no longer the case—-and we could all see it coming when even Obama made fun of being an art history major. At current tuition rates even with discounts (aka scholarships) and loans (and fewer resources to encourage less privileged people), there are better economic choices in certain trades. Shall we add the resurgent (always-been-there) anti-intellectualism of American society and the obvious ramifications of a polarized and partisan politics? The consequences of a low-information electorate are all too plain to see. Is there a remedy? Higher education is clueless, floundering (but for the uber-rich institutions), and the more it is run like corporations the more we can expect that only money will matter. That is not a future I look forward to but there is little else on the horizon.
Summarised in one paragraph ! It’s the same in Australia - ‘education’ (learning to learn - to critique, to appraise) devalued. Get a trade - guaranteed income and security ,,
When I worked in higher education administration, the cry from donors was to make the universities, (I worked for more than one), run "more like a business." And they did. More's the pity. It's why I retired early. My wish for your new graduates is that they do remember your valediction and take it to heart. May they build a life of meaningful relationships. Sweetly done, Douglas!
A true dose of wisdom, much needed today.
Amuse thyself.
Connect to thyself.
You are creators because you are translators, not only of words but of meaning for the human soul.
This, AI cannot do.
Thank you Doz.
Exactly what I needed to hear. 💜💙
Thoroughly enjoyed reading this, such true and beautiful words, and delivered in the perfect Douglas-style mix of wisdom and humor. ~ Rosemary Brocco
Thanks Douglas! Such important reminders for living a life of meaning and creativity, and for creating a meaningful life in these times. ❤️
Beautiful!
Sharing it to my students and relistening...