Humanities:
By Juliet Stouffer
As a creative writing, English, and film and media studies triple major, this Mess Wars topic is very close to my heart. My whole life, I can remember being told that the humanities are worthless; that, just because they don’t make the extent of money that science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields make, they are a waste of time. However, throughout my 14 years of writing, I have discovered how impactful the use of words has been to the world.
The biggest example of this was during the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, I saw more people than ever before in my life finding solace in books, films, and art. Now, I’m not saying that the talented doctors and scientists of that time weren’t also incredibly important, but what I am saying is that the humanities were just as essential in that time to keep people alive as healthcare workers were. The fields of arts and science worked together to save lives, not against each other.
People need stories to help them understand their deepest worries. They need teachers to help them grow into the person they deserve to be, and communities find hope and connection in films when they don’t know where else to find it. I know more than ever that, in these next four years, it will be incredibly important for artists, lawyers, writers, actors, teachers, philosophers, and historians to speak out. So, yes, I acknowledge the fact that I may not be the richest person in the world, but instead, I’ll be feeding people’s souls, I will be helping people feel like they have a home, and if I could do that for just one person, that’s all I want. I have always wanted to tell stories; I think it’s unfair that people think my job will somehow be less than others just because I don’t necessarily have the career destiny of being a millionaire. If money is truly the defining factor of happiness in this day and age, then how sad our lives have become.
STEM:
By Joel Tauro
Frankly speaking, I could come up with a million and one reasons as to why science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields are more important than humanities. You wouldn’t be able to exhale without a carbon dioxide molecule bouncing off something that exists solely because of STEM. Our lives, our comforts, and our abilities are the greatest they’ve ever been because of the innovation and progress people in STEM made. You can’t really fix the wifi-router by quoting Shakespeare at it.
I mean, the odds of us surviving up to this point without the medical breakthroughs we’ve had would be pretty slim. Children did not have a good track record of surviving past adolescence 100 years ago. Sure, we can’t really afford the medical care we do have now, however exquisite it is, but it’s comforting knowing that somebody has access to it. Having a good, healthy, and long life is the basis for anything we as a species can do. It’s what allows us to enjoy the culture and entertainment that the humanities give us.
What work of art or piece of literature ever changed the lives of humans the way a technological breakthrough ever has? You can talk about the enrichment of the soul as much as you want, but I prefer having job security instead.
I am kidding, of course — the entire question is based on a flawed premise, so that makes the argument flawed, too. Humanities could never compete with STEM in terms of importance — not now, not 100 years from now, not ever. But that does not mean that the humanities aren’t important. Our cultures, our stories, our words, and our creativity make us human, make us substantial, and make us important. Do keep in mind though, if you ever feel like STEM isn’t as important, I will come and collect your phone from you. Then you can just read books for the rest of your life and stare at paintings, or discuss existentialism in a corner with the other humanities students.
