But tonight I was thinking about universities. I have of course often criticized Humanities professors for being morally obtuse, and in general intellectually destructive. So of course I would abolish most Humanities departments, at least as currently constituted.
As one example, though, would it make sense to return to the “classics” of Western literature? Are these “classics” not in part the REASON our tradition has devolved to the point of collapse? Does “Pride and Prejudice” help mold better characters? Who knows? I see no reason to reflexively to return to what never was, and would think it more intelligent to move forward to an considered use of literary and other art.
Thus, it occurs to me it would make sense to develop a discipline which has as its focus and goal the development of ideas and principles–which of course it would test, as I fully envision this being a scientific enterprise–on how to create art which both ennobles the artist, and either helps lessen the burden of the co-participant–the viewer–or fills them with a broader happiness and sense of possibility than they already had. Or both.
Our literary tradition is filled with all sorts of literature. Take Edgar Allen Poe. How do you make him useful? I won’t say it can’t be done, but I will say it is not clear to me HOW and in what contexts it can be done. Someone should study that. I could get behind something like that, if done sincerely.
Our entire problem is that our great orienting principles, like human rights and equality before the law, are being desecrated by those for whom egalitarianism is the only creed which they can justify. This can be reversed and MUST be reversed if what is good in humanity is to survive the on-going onslaught on common decency being launched on us by the post-moral intellectual aesthetes.