Convocation for... Immaturity?
After convocating from University yesterday I have realized three major things:
1) getting a university degree in English and Philosophy is mentally taxing, difficult and extremely exhausting,
2) getting a university degree in English and Philosophy gives one an excuse to get bombed every weekend, make out with strangers and not have to act weird when you see them in class the next day, and
3) getting a university degree in English and Philosophy is useless.
I am the 5th person in my family to get a B.A. Nuts! I am already beginning to send out application packages for my next degree; masters programs, post-grads and other after degrees seem to be my only option. I do not lament this inescapable reality nor do I feel regret for choosing the program I did. My only stipulation is that our society does not value the educational process for what it was created to achieve. It is a corporation who is in the business of making money and churning out commodities that can be acquired to make more and churn out and trade, buy and sell more commodities.
Those with value are the BSc, BComm, BEd or even BNursing kids. A BA in anything, let alone Philosophy or Classics, is a source of amusement for the former bunch. Yet, oddly enough, it doesn't seem to matter that I am acquainted with the pre-Socratics, share an intimate relationship with Keats and Coleridge, can mull over Nietzsche month after month or use symbolic logic to dismantle arguments or flawed reasoning. All that seems to carry respect is the banal BComm.
My recalcitrance with the hegemonic norms of success and intelligence isn't from a place of malice or jealousy. It is simply from a pensive yet utterly pragmatic state of being, in which I acknowledge my little or no importance to the world of university grads.
Although I will go back and get another degree, perhaps even two, I do not regret for an instant my decision to become affectionately acquainted with, and well versed in, the canon of literature and philosophy I hope one day to become apart. It is the other lot which I pity; for their lack of historical knowledge only insulates them from the long and enriching histories of enlightened society. In the words of my brother in nihilism:
1) getting a university degree in English and Philosophy is mentally taxing, difficult and extremely exhausting,
2) getting a university degree in English and Philosophy gives one an excuse to get bombed every weekend, make out with strangers and not have to act weird when you see them in class the next day, and
3) getting a university degree in English and Philosophy is useless.
I am the 5th person in my family to get a B.A. Nuts! I am already beginning to send out application packages for my next degree; masters programs, post-grads and other after degrees seem to be my only option. I do not lament this inescapable reality nor do I feel regret for choosing the program I did. My only stipulation is that our society does not value the educational process for what it was created to achieve. It is a corporation who is in the business of making money and churning out commodities that can be acquired to make more and churn out and trade, buy and sell more commodities.
Those with value are the BSc, BComm, BEd or even BNursing kids. A BA in anything, let alone Philosophy or Classics, is a source of amusement for the former bunch. Yet, oddly enough, it doesn't seem to matter that I am acquainted with the pre-Socratics, share an intimate relationship with Keats and Coleridge, can mull over Nietzsche month after month or use symbolic logic to dismantle arguments or flawed reasoning. All that seems to carry respect is the banal BComm.
My recalcitrance with the hegemonic norms of success and intelligence isn't from a place of malice or jealousy. It is simply from a pensive yet utterly pragmatic state of being, in which I acknowledge my little or no importance to the world of university grads.
Although I will go back and get another degree, perhaps even two, I do not regret for an instant my decision to become affectionately acquainted with, and well versed in, the canon of literature and philosophy I hope one day to become apart. It is the other lot which I pity; for their lack of historical knowledge only insulates them from the long and enriching histories of enlightened society. In the words of my brother in nihilism:
"To those human beings who are of any concern to me I wish suffering, desolation, sickness, ill-treatment, indignities - I wish that they should not remain unfamiliar with profound self-contempt, the torture of self-mistrust, the wretchedness of the vanquished: I have no pity for them, because I wish them the only thing that can prove today whether one is worth anything or not - that one endures."
(Nietzsche, The Will to Power, p 481)
posted by Anna @ 2:39 p.m.
3 Comments:
You know Anna, I am one of those people with a "banal BComm." I don't feel that it is of value to me, however. I think this is my own fault, actually, as I perhaps did not, and am not applying myself or my degree/education very effectively. The point is, I'm not exactly reaping the benefits of this degree.
It is the other lot which I pity; for their lack of historical knowledge only insulates them from the long and enriching histories of enlightened society.
I do feel as though my education is lacking. Many of my friends are well-versed in matters of history, philosophy, and literature. They are able to discuss interesting ideas, events, time periods, written works and so on with such ease, while I am completely in the dark. I envy those students who have studied such topics long and hard. While many may be in the same position as I am, I think they probably do feel somewhat more fulfilled with regards to their personal development.
It sucks that such well-educated people don't appear to be highly valued by society. At the same time, I don't believe it is just the arts students who are subjected to this. In the case of majority, however, I suppose the arts students probably do win (or lose) on this one.
Anyhow Anna, in spite of how little I actually know you, you seem to be one of the most intelligent and outspoken people I know. Your power as a person will only grow as you acquire your 2nd...3rd degree, and I wish you the best of luck in your endeavours. Make a difference, hey?
you forget the BAppSc. We're even more worthy than everyone else.
Yo, I hear you loud and clear. It took me 5 years (or more to do a BA) but now I forget almost everything except details about Stalingrad, most of which were actually culled from watching Jude Law and Rachel Weisz (sic) get busy. In the words of my brother in nihilism:
"Auuuugg"
-Charlie Brown, 1973
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