humanities major

humanities major

Exploring the Significance of Humanities in the Modern World

1. Introduction to Humanities and its Importance

Humanities are the branches that, through the human before anything else, bring man to the forefront in the struggle to survive since they aim to transmit the personality traits of the individual we call humans as distinguished from other creatures from father to son during the process called education. Through the personality traits (manners), the education of which makes human’s distinction and uniqueness among other creatures possible, and the various teaching branches carrying out this education, discovering, ameliorating, and developing these adjectives suggesting that it is an area of knowledge dealing with the various important characteristics of the concept called “being human” is the essence of humanities. The word humanities comes from the Latin words “Humanus” which mean the man. In spite of the strong bonds through various centuries, the name of humanity has an origin with some ambiguity. However, the main sense indicated by this world in most of the cases is an area of knowledge. On one hand, it refers to the specific investigation and initiatives, autonomy, traditional and specific and traditional-humanistic disciplines (philosophy, philology, literature, history, etc.), physical and theoretical subjects, like social-scientific and physical research, which are considered as humanity’s emanation, on the other hand, the “disturbed” ideological debate leaving unsolved and fermenting “disciplinary” problems.

Man, originally a social being, has always been affected by social happenings and tried to explain such things through myths, written texts, images, and languages of various kinds. Here, we gathered under the name ‘humanities’, disciplines and themes which have created this mirroring focusing on men. The great thinker, Rousseau, rightly pointed out that “man has reached the stage of civilization because he is living a social life”. This statement has made obvious two points: The concept of social life could be possible to present through progress or classification; individuals, brushing their attitudes against social values, could realize this classification, that is, cultural forms could be regenerated. Considering everything, a successful social life, where individuals harmonize with all existent beings, is always the dream of humans and what they work for. The questions concerning a satisfying and aesthetic life with what kind of an approach should be solved when there is not a standard of the issue of such problems is also closely related to defining “human”.

2. Key Disciplines within the Humanities Field

This type of curricular block is commonly restricted to a few specialized areas of study. Its aim is to effectively prepare specialists who have a strong cultural-historical expertise and who are well-prepared in the use of education management technologies. The primary difference between Area Studies-type programs and culture-related historical studies and the graduates who can specialize in this field are that it is geared more toward the practical aspects of education work and the management of educational institutions. Graduates of Area Studies programs usually go into cultural work or opera houses, and good knowledge of the historical and cultural heritage of the nation is an integral part of a linguist’s professional makeup.

Culture-related historical studies

Area-based studies include world history, Soviet and Russian history, the theory and history of European culture (in different periods), the history of the country of one’s source language, and the country itself. The discipline of Cultural Studies or a Theory of Culture may also be included in this block of subjects. Moreover, Cultural Studies may be either completely self-contained or have a disciplinary component attributed to language, for example in linguistic studies drawing on cultural sources. Graduating with a degree in linguistics has a certain significance in post-Soviet conditions. This is due to the fact that at present, Russian has the status of a Eurasian language. As an official language of a bilingual country, Russian is also an important language throughout the CIS.

Area-based studies in the fields of humanities

3. The Intersection of Humanities with Technology and Innovation

Spotify’s activities in the field of mood analysis and music recommendation systems are discussed. Its technology uses modeling methods that were inherited from the psychological study of emotions and many theories from music. That being said, this has not greatly increased the interest of the humanities in the field of streaming service: Spotify rarely mentions the power of its humanities applications. At the same time, there are many unresolved issues related to the use of customer information to make decisions, such as a high degree of risk for the privacy of personal data (special music, fainting or gender information), discrimination and humanitarian impact, personalization. As a solution among customers inside and interdisciplinary, it only aggravates these threats because it is not transparent.

The modern technology industry can be a good tool for many fields, including humanities. However, this influence is continuous in both directions. Humanitarian and the technology industry can and should learn. One plus one can give long-term benefits to both. Indeed, the use of various humanities disciplines for Spotify services has long been a fact. The most popular streaming service has been using it since the beginning.

4. The Role of Humanities in Promoting Critical Thinking and Empathy

The so-called panic regarding the rejection of humanities is not only linked to the decline in the absolute and relative number of students enrolled in such degrees, but also to the fact that increasingly they are educated at lower levels to meet the needs of the market, in theory, more concerned with technical knowledge than with the “refining” of behaviors and identities, or with the indispensable paths to personal growth. In subways, shopping centers, and movie theaters, the citizens of the global village “consume” aristocracy, democracy, the Renaissance, the Middle Ages, Napoleon, Hammurabi’s code. Words and names that dazzle in minute-long presentations or water cooler chit-chat, but whose hierarchy would fade or even collapse if such “consumers” had to sit down and discuss the significance and relevance of such highly symbolic events. Unemployment and not appreciating theater, art, or literature is a mistake. Very few literature graduates will enthusiastically devote themselves to academic careers. A large majority will take to careers unrelated to the field in which they were trained. Only in the moments now so rare of leisure, pleasure, and hedonism will these professionals draw upon the education and culture accumulated during their university years. With their knowledge of poetry, philosophy, and history, these literature graduates are safely positioned to engage in bureaucratic 9-to-5 routines, corporate environments, or daily domestic chores.

The transition to the so-called knowledge-based economy exacerbates the demand for critical thinking, flexibility, creativity, and comprehension of complex and contradictory issues. These capabilities are closely linked to degree programs in humanities. In fact, humanities are concerned with the study of human behavior, expression, and values. It is about rigorous analysis and breaking down problems in order to find lasting solutions. Humanities are built upon ethics, curiosity, access to places and ideas that were unknown, respect for differences, and the demand for freedom of expression. These disciplines transcend political boundaries and are fundamental for global citizenship. In times of accelerating climate change, genetic engineering, genomics, nanotechnology, and other technological marvels that dominate both human society at large and individuals, humanity’s future will only be as promising as its relationship to technological progress.

5. Case Studies and Examples of Successful Applications of Humanities in Various Sectors

Many people leave school with good A-levels in science and/or mathematics, only to enter the creative arts via degree courses specially drawn up to fill a perceived gap in the market. This move has sometimes been motivated by dissatisfaction with the obsession of business-related courses on conformity to rigid career structures or the strict measurement of performance. It is hard to quantify these ‘transferable’ skills, though a two-year study to be published next spring by arts campaigners presumably has something to say on the matter. The issue is less dramatic in the UK, but it increases efficiency and putting arts to good use in a participating democracy. The dynamic response of history, literature, or philosophy comes from challenging students to make connections between different ideas and conflicting approaches that imply a qualifications framework, however.

There is a growing consensus that the ‘soft’ skills of comprehension, reflection, debate, and creativity are equally vital and can only be nurtured through humanities subjects such as history, literature, and philosophy. In the UK, calls for these to be recognized by coalition government ministers and to help boost Britain post-Brexit have put the humanities into the limelight in recent years. The skills of comprehension, reflection, debate, and creativity that can be learned through studying and inquiry are equally vital, even if they are less easy to articulate. It is also widely acknowledged in the modern knowledge economy, competition depends more and more on having a creative, flexible, and dissolvent workforce, capable of moving between different tasks and markets.