Part 1

Small makes a case for the value of humanities taught institutionally in their importance throughout public life- rhetoric, critical thinking, personal happiness, and simply that they matter because they exist, that they do not have to provide a service to the world in order to be deemed valuable, they simply have to be enjoyed as a subject.

I personally agree with all of the above. The humanities and liberal arts provide a rounded framework to view the world and promote a way of thinking that both accepts ideas from the past and pushes toward the future. It is a broad category that demands the student think deeply about each work and consider the myriad of ways in which the subject can be interpreted. Critical thinking and rationalization are the hallmarks of a grounded, reasonable person, and it is my view that the humanities build these qualities. They are intrinsically valuable to everyday life both professionally and personally. Moving throughout the world, especially a world built on capitalism like the U.S., requires one to be constantly aware of the propaganda, advertising, and subliminal meaning coded into everything around us. The humanities work as a tool, to understand the world with a keener eye.

Part 2

If I were able to create my own job it would be similar to a library’s special collections. I would be surrounded by past works and sources, sorting and categorizing them into files, being able to move through history and make it neat for the future. Being able to organize the writing, paraphernalia, and memorabilia, and then in turn write up the descriptions to be neatly tucked away would be perfect. I would like it to be a mostly solo job, though with coworkers. We have our own projects to work on and we are not in each other’s way, but there is still a collaboration to build up an archive and preserve the past.

I personally have already experienced this type of work. I interned with Cathleen Miller over the 2022 summer to aid in the processing of the Lee Sharkey collection for the MWWC. Considering I am detail-oriented, driven to completion of tasks, and have a deep enjoyment of organization, this internship was perfect for me. I am currently majoring in English with two minors in Writing and Anthropology, which makes archival work absolutely perfect for me. I would love to be able to pursue a special collections or museum archival job.