Auden's poem closes with comic (but not really) advice for humanists: Thou shalt not sit/ With statisticians nor commit/A social science … Thou shalt not be on friendly terms/With guys in advertising firms … If thou must choose/Between the chances, choose the odd;/ Read The New Yorker, trust in God …
Imagine "social media" where "advertising" sits in the stanza and imagine an intellectual climate where the last piece of advice doesn't seem like a contradiction in terms, and you've imagined the beginnings of humanism's revival. May we live to see the day.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/08/opinion/oh-the-humanities.htmlAdeshina Afolayan, PhD
Department of Philosophy
University of Ibadan
+23480-3928-8429
Department of Philosophy
University of Ibadan
+23480-3928-8429
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