Question

In her commencement speech, Judith Butler argued that studying the humanities is important for personal development but it has little impact in our public lives as citizens in a democracy.

a) true
b) false

Answer 1

The claim that Judith Butler stated studying the humanities has little public impact is false. The humanities are integral to personal development and play a significant role in civic engagement and democracy. The study involves critical thinking and communication, essential skills benefitting public lives and professional fields.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement about Judith Butler's commencement speech suggesting that studying the humanities is important for personal development but has little impact on our public lives as citizens in a democracy is false. Butler, along with other proponents of the humanities such as Amanda Anderson and Diarmaid MacCulloch, emphasize that the humanities play a crucial role in both personal growth and civic engagement. The humanities foster critical thinking, interpretive skills, and an understanding of human behavior, which are essential for making informed decisions in a democratic society.

Moreover, the fields within the humanities, like literature, history, and philosophy, are fundamental to comprehending the human condition and fostering a society with healthy democratic practices. Studying history, for example, isn't just about retaining names and dates; it's about understanding the human story and preparing for the future. The humanities also contribute to the acquisition of valuable job skills, such as analytical thinking and effective communication, which are highly sought after in various professional fields.

Answer 2

The statement si “False”. In her commencement speech, Judith Butler argued that studying the humanities is important for personal development and it has a lot of impact in our public lives as citizens in a democracy.

Step-by-step explanation:

Judith Butler in her speech suggests that it is a privilege to have taken humanities courses because they allow us to learn to read reality critically. The contents of these courses are important because they allow us to know life forms, thoughts, actions and reflections of distant populations in time or space. Thus, we can understand cultural differences and diverse perspectives on the world that help us to understand that we share the world with very diverse people and beings. According to the author, the contents of the humanities courses transform us as people as we become more critical. This is reflected in our thinking and in our performance.

Judith Butler points out that the immeasurable values ​​of critical thinking (that develops through the study of the humanities) is related to the possibility of becoming a citizen, in committing publicly or in learning the best way to change and preserve the planet. These ideas teach us what it means to practice citizenship and learn what it means to be without citizenship rights, and to be empathic with those situations in which people have lost them or have never been granted. It teaches us what it means to live in this unequal world and gives us ideas to counteract this situation in an ethical, legal and political way.