STEM can save lives. The Arts and Humanities enrich lives.
All of us taking a humanities degree have had that moment. That moment of fear when we get asked what degree we are studying. Whether it be your new flatmates during the dreaded Fresher’s week or whether it be a member of your extended family you have conveniently avoided since the days of UCAS begun, the fear is real. The reason for it: we don’t want to be asked questions like, ‘So, what is Sociology?’, ‘Is Art History actually a degree?’, ‘In English don’t you just read books?’
However, it’s time for those of us who work in and study the arts and humanities to change the way we defend them. Often people do these disciplines a disservice by falling into a trap of discussing the career prospects these degrees can lead to, the fact that they make us more articulate for Job interviews etc. People are not going to buy that - of course an arts degree is not going to have the same direct impact as a Medicine or Pharmacy degree and we all know that. So, instead, what people should really be focussing on is not how they improve employment, but how they improve lives.
as humans we want to be enriched, we have a desire to be stimulated, we want to judge ourselves against others
Of course, we need medical professionals and researchers - thank goodness for them - but we can’t all be Oncologists or Psychiatrists and nor would we want to be. That is because as humans we want to be enriched, we have a desire to be stimulated, we want to judge ourselves against others, we want to investigate Alien worlds and appreciate the values and talents of other humans, and the arts has a unique ability to do that. Every film or documentary we watch, and every article we read has got a team of creatives from the world of the arts and humanities behind it.
The arts and humanities allow us to escape from reality and explore the world through a different lens
I love nothing more than to quote a Miss Blanche Dubois who said ‘I don’t want realism, I want magic.’ A line written of course by Tennessee Williams, which in short means that we all want to escape, even if you do have a passion for Optometry. The arts and humanities allow us to escape from reality and explore the world through a different lens. So, we need people to study them so that they continue to exist and continue to enrich lives because sometimes a medical journal just isn’t enough. P.s don’t forget what John Lennon said, you must do ‘Whatever gets you through the night.’ The Arts and Humanities are certainly valuable for doing just that.