The Teaching of the Arts and Humanities at Harvard College Mapping the Future

The need to underscore this nexus of illuminating reception and constructive evaluation by the Arts and the Humanities is all the more urgent given the historical moment we face, a moment characterized by economic, military, ecological, religious and technological challenges of mighty profile. We therefore judge re-articulation of the extraordinary promise of the Humanities to be timely. Our students are preparing to act adroitly in a global environment; they are also preparing to flourish in an austere job market. The Arts and the Humanities are essential on both inter-related fronts, cultural and personal. This document offers such an articulation. We begin by focusing, however, on a prior and more immediate challenge, which is the troubled status of the Humanities themselves in this new environment.

http://artsandhumanities.fas.harvard.edu/files/humanities/files/mapping_the_future_31_may_2013.pdf