Throughout all of the many pages from Cardinal John Henry Newman that we read, there were several steady themes and approaches that he took regarding his discussion of knowledge, the place of religion in the university, and gentlemanliness. While our analysis of his ideas during class uncovered some inconsistencies and hypocrisies in his work, especially in relation to the theories of secular humanism and the general ideologies of the Universities of today, there was one key argument that I felt was central to understanding his message. Newman stressed the importance of all types of knowledge in the university, not excluding, and sometimes most importantly, religion. Be it the sciences, mathematics, history, writing, or a fundamental understanding of theology, Newman believed that all aspects contributed to the gentleman as a whole. The thoughts are summarized perfectly in the introduction of an earlier edition of The Idea of a University, written by Major General Josiah Bunting III, the former superintendant and professor of humanities at Virginia Military Institute. Bunting says that, "Considering the idea and purposes of a university, Newman developed one of his major themes: the connectedness of all knowledge, theology not excluded; and indeed the necessity of making that connectedness manifest, for and before, undergraduates who would be the beneficiaries of the academic curriculum of the university". Bunting identifies a crucial point in that a University cannot just teach many different types of academic and religious courses to its students, it must make them aware of the relationship between all knowledge and allow them to implement aspects from every field in their daily lives.
Although we have already identified Newman's exclusiveness towards white, American males as the subjects of a gentlemanly education, as well as his propensity to let academics take a backseat to religion, his ideas are indeed the very foundation of today's 'liberal arts' education. In fact, right here at Trinity University a major part our common curriculum falls under the heading of "The Understandings". Cultural heritage, the arts and literature, human social interaction, quantitative reasoning, and natural science and technology are the five understandings, of which several hours of coursework must be completed to satisfy the requirements of the common curriculum. In the University's catalogue, it states that the purpose of the common curriculum is in part to promote the "personal, lifelong quest for understanding oneself and one's place in the world, and the serious commitment to respond to the opportunities and needs of society and self, which are the true marks of a liverally educated person". Knowing this in light of our recent discussions about Newman's work raises an interesting question: Would a liberally educated person found to have successfully completed the requirements to graduate from Trinity University meet Newman's criteria for a gentleman? Undoubtedly the absence of a requirement to study religion would be frowned upon, but it is thought-provoking to consider the differences between our liberal arts education and the ideas of a man who will soon be given the title of saint.
What is the precise definition of a gentlemen for John Henry Newman ?
ReplyDelete"It is well to be a gentlemen, it is well to have a cultivated intellect, a delicate taste, a candid, equitable, dispassionate mind, a noble and courteous bearing in the conduct of life;—these are the {121} connatural qualities of a large knowledge; they are the objects of a University; I am advocating, I shall illustrate and insist upon them; but still, I repeat, they are no guarantee for sanctity or even for conscientiousness, they may attach to the man of the world, to the profligate, to the heartless,—pleasant, alas, and attractive as he shows when decked out in them. Taken by themselves, they do but seem to be what they are not; they look like virtue at a distance, but they are detected by close observers, and on the long run; and hence it is that they are popularly accused of pretence and hypocrisy, not, I repeat, from their own fault, but because their professors and their admirers persist in taking them for what they are not, and are officious in arrogating for them a praise to which they have no claim. Quarry the granite rock with razors, or moor the vessel with a thread of silk; then may you hope with such keen and delicate instruments as human knowledge and human reason to contend against those giants, the passion and the pride of man" (Newman 81).
According to Newman, the gentleman requires a liberal arts education in order to have the refined skills mentioned previously. The liberal arts education while in itself not a technical career, it is a way for an individual to explore various areas and have the capacity to adapt to any sort of technical requirement he meets. In other words, a liberally educated person will not just learn carpentry, but will learn a wide variety of subjects that will allow him to adapt to any professional position. He will have the ability to be a manager, to be a peace corps volunteer, to be a financial analyst. Apart from this, he will have the social refinements described by Newman in the selection mentioned previously.
Why Study the Liberal Arts and Sciences at Trinity University ?
"Trinity students get a taste of many disciplines and are exposed to a variety of information and opinions. This well-rounded education provides a context for knowledge that allows students to see how their major field of study fits into the world around them. Today's employers are looking for skills that are at the core of a Trinity liberal arts and sciences education. They want multifaceted leaders who can think critically, manage time and resources, and respond and adapt in a rapidly changing work environment.
But is it important for someone who wants to be a journalist or an accountant or a kindergarten teacher to study history, biology, philosophy, or music? Why would students study any subject that does not specifically train them for their desired job? For the same reason that a soccer player lifts weights or runs sprints to get ready for a game—because these exercises build the muscles, speed, and coordination that can improve his or her performance. This is also true of the human brain. Exercising it by studying various subjects is akin to mental cross training—it builds intellectual muscle power, providing the strong foundation required to perform well in any endeavor.
The average American changes careers between five to seven times, sometimes starting over in an entirely different field. But nearly every profession requires creative problem solving, insight, thoughtful decision making, analytical thinking, and the ability to work with a wide variety of people. These, and many other essential skills, comprise the very foundation of a Trinity University education. But, more importantly, a student who has acquired a broad range of knowledge is better able to navigate through today's complexities. Not just prepared to join the workforce, Trinity graduates are equipped to tackle the challenges of twenty-first century life as well.
The value of a Trinity liberal arts and sciences education far exceeds the knowledge students gain in the classroom. It provides them with an array of essential skills ranging from written and oral communication to research and investigation, arming them with the crucial tools needed for life-long learning" ("Liberal").
Trinity’s statement does not explicitly mention the refinements of the Newman gentleman. Instead, Trinity argues that a liberal arts education will allow the individual to adapt to any sort of environment and know what his or her specific role or is in the bigger picture. Perhaps this statement alludes in some regard to Newman’s gentleman when it states that “[n]ot just prepared to join the workforce, Trinity graduates are equipped to tackle the challenges of twenty-first century life as well” ("Liberal"). Soft skills are the way to tackle the challenges of the twenty-first century, which are not just present in the workplace. In an interview with the New York Times Peggy Klaus makes the distinction between soft and hard skills as: “[t]he hard skills are the technical expertise you need to get the job done. The soft skills are really everything else — competencies that go from self-awareness to one’s attitude to managing one’s career to handling critics, not taking things personally, taking risks, getting along with people and many, many more” (Alboher). This definition is to a certain degree similar to the refinements of a gentleman described by Newman. Are these soft skills taught in a classroom setting? Perhaps. Are these soft skills learned in a college setting outside of the classroom ? Probably. A residential college provides opportunities for the development of soft skills in the residential halls, in fraternities, in clubs. While the specific terms Newman uses are to some level anachronistic, the soft skills are a necessary tool for the social interactions of the twenty-first century. It seems then that the Newman gentleman may have some application to the modern world and specifically to Trinity. While there are spaces for the development of social skills in the Trinity setting, it does not mean that a Trinity education will necessarily convert the students to soft skills experts. Thus Newman’s gentleman parallels with Nietzche’s Ubermensch in that these two characters strive to achieve the best or ultimate goals in their respective fields, while in Newman’s case just having a liberal education will not necessarily convert the student to this reasonable, thoughtful, and refined gentleman. Spaces for this type of growth are available but such a description of a gentleman is a lofty goal that is out of reach.
Links:
Benefits of a Liberal Arts Education at Trinity
http://www.trinity.edu/departments/admissions/mz3/benefits.shtml
Soft Skills
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/07/business/smallbusiness/07shift.html?_r=1
In my personal opinion I am not supportive of the Newman's theory for the university. The idea of the gentleman is somthing elective. Not everyone would like to be a gentleman as he describes. For example in my country Albania the prevalent virtues are courage, strength of religion, self-respect and agreement of heart and toungue. The virtues of Newman's gentleman which are considered as refined and polite are considered by our beliefs to be flattery. I also don't support the idea of common curriculum. I believe that the students have already learned their well-rounded knowledge at their high school level and should concentrate on their majors' subjects. Common curriculum is just some useless knowledge that someone findas rare chances to use. A scientific major doesn't need anymore social and liberal arts knowledge, and even less does a social and liberal arts major need scientific knowledge. All it does is making more difficult the university life for the students. Students according to their tendness find it really hard to study classes of other profiles in an advanced level.
ReplyDeleteHis idea of a perfect university, whose students learn everything after graduating from it is utopic. It has never been realized and will never be except for a small groups of people that I believe have innate skills. So it is according to me somekind of destiny of those genious people who have a profound knowledge at any topic. But according to many other intellectual figures on education specialization at a certain topic is much more prolific than trying to have a well-rounded knowledge.
Regarding his idea of including religion in education, I believe that it is unnecesarry. There are many institutions have their primary goal teaching people religion, so I think that it would be a burden for students if religion was obligatory at the university level. Religion is a free choice that someone makes and others don't. I also believe that it gives damage to religious issues if they are forced to be learned. Most of the students would learn religion as part of their education not as a spiritual commitment. the primary purpose of religion is to teach moral values not to give some piece of information. Religion is taught differently to different level of understanding. But making religion study obligatory looses the very purpouse of it.
So as a conclusion I believe that Newman's idea of university is not so useful and not so realistic. The primary purpose of university is to give people a profession useful for life,with the exception for those who have more specific goals. They can gain their required knowledge in other ways without affecting others.
I think Herion touches on an issue that comes up often in our texts and the more general debate about higher education, which is the supposed conflict between specialization and general education (and yes, I say "supposed" consciously). As an instructor, I have often found that students' high school backgrounds range so widely that a common curriculum like that of Trinity has at least one major benefit, which is to make sure that students have access to introductory material and skills in a variety of subjects that may not have been covered in high schools. This may make it sound as if common curriculum requirements is sometimes remedial, which is not what I mean necessarily--though one of the difficulties of teaching at the college level is that you often find a student's previous education may have lacked in certain areas of study, and the professor's role occasionally thus becomes one of closing those gaps we wish had been previously filled.
ReplyDeleteBut I would also reiterate what Melissa mentioned in class, which is that another positive reason for common curriculum is to allow those students who haven't already chosen a major or career path to identify intellectual interests--and even those students who do know what they want to do can perhaps find subject areas they may want to pursue either as alternate or additional majors or just for personal enlightenment.
Of course, I chose to attend a liberal arts university as a student and happily teach at a liberal arts university, so I have my own biases in favor of general education as a sound basis for and supplement to more specialized coursework.