2007
Humanities Award Highly Commended Entry
Being a New Zealander... and the accidental search of the
humanities.
Anna Wu
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
To Smack or not to smack?
Is smacking inhumane? It is likely that both ‘humane’ and
‘humanities’ are derived from the same Latin root, ‘h
m
nit
s, from h
m
nus,” 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
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
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
(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
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