Journal #1 – 9/3/25

After reading the two articles, my perception of the humanities has changed. During’s article discusses how the humanities are loosely linked together and often overlap in values, ideologies, or their focus. However, there is also a distinction of this study compared to others; whereas sciences have concrete formulas and definitions, the humanities are less rigid within their world. This group of studies has grown in popularity over time and represents individual thinking in education and in ‘extra-mural humanities’, the real world. During describes how the humanities can be labeled through their objects, “what the human species has created”. (4) There’s a focus on improving what we already know and learning new developments. Something I found conjuring in During’s passage was the distinction of the studies; they overlap, but they don’t? The humanities changed over time, from separate fields of knowledge within specific departments to now becoming a “meta-discipline.” (2) This means there’s growing flexibility within the interdisciplinary. In During’s project, he discusses the purposes of the humanities world; the idea that across the world there are various forms of the Humanities, although they may not be called that. There’s a connection to historical thinking and where we are now, like a revolving infinity circle. The humanities have variations and alternatives that overlap culturally, historically, globally, or stand alone to explore the possibilities of human meaning and thinking outside the formal structure.