[csaa-forum] Ring wing academic attacks humanities.

[langley timmy]

 Hi all,
there is an article in today’s australian (online) by
Gregory Melleuish titled ‘So much for liberal
education’. 

it's another right wing attack on the humanities. this
time by an academic. Melleuish has written right wing
articles to the australian before. 

as i said before, it was no coincidence that graeme’s
excellent article in the asutralian last week was
placed opposite to an anti-humanities article
reprinted from the economist. Melleuish quotes from
that article, and uses it as the foundation to his
argument.

a number of things come to mind:
these attacks are not limited to right wing media
commentators. bolt, as annoying as he is, is only a
small tic in a wider problem: this dog’s only getting
dirtier and the tics are spreading.

i think Melleuish is far more damaging than bolt.
Bolt’s readership is not, I would suggest, howard and
nelson. 
As an academic his arguments hold more weight, even
though they just as absurd. Actually, they are more
absurd, at least bolt does some (extremely minor)
research.

Read article here:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,11735853%5E7583,00.html

some absurd elements (and there are many) of the
article:
‘We require such a multiplicity of conversations
because the ideas that humans produce are as various
as human nature and the circumstances in which people
find themselves. To reduce that multiplicity to a
singularity is to reduce our appreciation of the human
condition to a very narrow focus.’

what? this sounds like something i wrote as an
undergraduate: trying to impress, making no sense,
having little knowledge.

simplistic assertions based on no empirical evidence:
‘No surveys have been conducted, but any sustained
contact with the humanities and social sciences in
Australian universities brings one face to face with a
stultifying conformity that is soon quite
mind-numbing. There is the obligatory Howard bashing,
anti-Americanism and belief in the depraved past of
both Australia and Western civilisation. Academics in
these areas are possibly the only group in the
country, outside doctors' wives, where Green voters
are in a majority. ‘

the assertion begins with a caveat: there is no
survey, however as an academic Melleuish is in
‘sustained contact’ with humanities academics.  

assertion: humanities are homogeneous:
‘intellectual conformism of academics in the
humanities and social sciences and their unwillingness
to concede the moral legitimacy of those with whom
they disagree. The history wars can be understood in
these terms.’

Melleuish ties this argument back to one aspect of the
history wars, which keith windshuttle wrote a book
about: the humanities are ‘killing history’ with fancy
French theories.

assertion: (extreme neo-conservative) right wing think
tanks such as ipa and cis offer diversity to
intellectual life in Australia.
‘There are only a small number of think tanks such as
the Centre for Independent Studies and the Institute
of Public Affairs and an equally small number of
private universities. More think tanks and private
universities would provide a counter to the conformity
of the public university.’
there are many more, i just too frustrated to think
straight. i'll put my thoughts together later.
cheers tim



	
	
		
___________________________________________________________ 
ALL-NEW Yahoo! Messenger - all new features - even more fun! http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com