Bachelor of Arts major in Communication Arts student Angelica reacts to people belittling her and others because they are studying something that not everyone understands the concept of. She shares her frustration in a way of educating people who do not know what they do in the Liberal Arts. Good read.
“Ate ano po ba ginagawa niyo sa Communication Arts?”
It’s not a question that I can answer independently. This is a field for the liberal and intellectual. This is not a field for memorizing all the mathematical equations and for you to expect us to answer them all, and if we can not answer them you’d consider us “intellectually incapable.” We do not partake in memorizing the “objectives.” What do I mean by “objectives?” Objectives are those with already an existing answer. We are the field that “subjects” everything. To make it sound easier, “objectives” are the sciences and the mathematics. They have the definite results and answers. We, the “liberal arts” are the men and women who would “subject” the existing world for all that it lacks or it has. If you were to eliminate all that “subjects” (us), the men and women of the liberal arts, there you have the world of “finiteness.” The media will be gone, the very media that once (or twice) united the Filipinos against countless regimes of suppressive governments (Dare I say our very own La Solidaridad), in fact 51% of the population in our country are uneducated voters because they lack the kind of “thinking” that courses in our department offers.
The very articles that you are reading right now inRappler? Who wrote those articles that made you realize that Atty. Defensor is the better candidate?
Liberal arts majors.
This is a vague example but there are so much more I can credit my major for.
If we were to put an end to the freedom of expressing ourselves that contain opinions different from the “objects” that already have their definitions would result in a catastrophe, and the “nightmare” in George Orwell’s 1984 would take place.
You see, you cannot undervalue the arts (or the liberal arts) when compared to the sciences and the mathematics because you cannot compare a subjective to an objective. It’s like comparing William Shakespeare to Albert Einstein, both masters of their respective platforms.
So please, don’t refer to us in phrases like: “AB lang ‘yan.”
(photo cto: berlin-artparasites, your favorite source of hipster-ness)
What do you think of this? Let us know!
I may be taking things out of context due to… a lack of context but I don’t sense any belittlement from the question in the first place. Don’t get me wrong; I’m all for not patronizing the arts. In fact, I believe I am aware enough of the boon that comes with recognizing it (me being a fan of humanities and communication, specifically language). However, she might not be doing the best thing to defend the idea.
Firstly, although the sentence alone does not stand to say that only those in the “liberal arts” are “liberal and intellectual,” it might be hard to imply otherwise when she followed her first sentence with ideas expressing that non-members of the liberal arts only engage in memorization and lack in certain ways of “thinking” (she’s trying to say “critical thinking,” perhaps?).
Second, she then proceeds with the false dichotomy and begins throwing as much words, which I think she believes to be “big and intimidating” as if it helps push her agenda forward, as she can.
Miss Dela Cruz, if you could read this, please know that even in your own field you must engage in objectivity just as a scientist or mathematician would deal in matters that require subjective or arbitrary analysis (when they design schematic diagrams or interpret marketing patterns). Even you, to function as you were trained to be, are required to “memorize” theories here and there just as a psychologist would analyze affects and effects of certain phenomena. There is no dichotomy where traits such as being liberal, intellectual, critical, subjective or objective are exclusive to either only the arts or the sciences. Both are important to their own respective fields but neither may exist or function without the other.
P.S. The words subjective and objective (in context) are both adjectives, please use them as such.
P.P.S. Don’t disgrace the world of the arts with your insecurities.
I do agree with this one. I don’t belittle AB majors but some students under this field also belittle other fields like THRM, HRM and Tourism. Don’t get me wrong. But it is true. It’s not actually the course or field that we are belittling but in some people’s perspective, they just can’t stand some courses that they think doesn’t automatically fit in our society. And for me, that is called crab-mentality, pulling other people from their success. Insecurities because they evolve in one aspect and some do not. I actually admire AB Majors because they have the freedom to publish whatever thoughts they have, especially in their opinion towards the society. For us, business majors? Tourism students/graduates, Hoteliers & Restaurateurs? We need to be updated with the latest trend in our society today that will help our economy and learn our history and culture to teach the young ones now that is living in the technology era. How can we do this? Through the help of the social media, columnists, writers, historians and other people with Bachelor of Arts degree. Arts and Sciences can stand on their own but it doesn’t mean that it will not be more interesting if you combine the two contrasting ideas. It’s just called innovation. So stop all those insecurities cause we are all different and we have different interests.. in which we would excel the most.
Ironically, the layout/design/development of this website itself is probably done by an AB Arts Major..
That is a very odd reaction for a very simple question.