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Jump to navigationJump to searchNew page: The '''humanities''' are those academic disciplines which study the human condition using methods that are largely analytic, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from...
The '''humanities''' are those academic disciplines which study the [[human condition]] using methods that are largely [[analytic]], [[critical]], or [[speculative]], as distinguished from the mainly [[empirical]] approaches of the [[natural science|natural]] and [[social sciences]]. Conventionally the humanities include [[Languages|ancient and modern languages]] and [[literature]], [[history]], [[philosophy]], [[religion]], [[visual arts|visual]] and [[performing arts]] (including [[music]]). Additional subjects sometimes included in the humanities are [[anthropology]], [[area studies]], [[communications]] and [[cultural studies]], although these are often regarded as social sciences. Scholars working in the humanities are sometimes described as "humanists". But that term also describes the philosophical position of [[humanism]], which some "[[antihumanist]]" scholars in the humanities reject.
==Humanities fields==
===Classics===
The classics, in the Western academic tradition, refer to cultures of [[classical antiquity]], namely the Ancient Greek and Roman cultures. Classical study was formerly considered one of the cornerstones of the humanities, but the classics declined in importance during the [[20th century]]. Nevertheless, the influence of classical ideas in humanities such as philosophy and literature remain strong.
More broadly speaking, the "classics" are the foundational writings of the earliest major cultures of the World. In other major traditions, classics would refer to the [[Vedas]] and [[Upanishads]] in India, the writings of [[Lao-tse]] and [[Chuang-tzu]] in China, and writings such as the [[The_Code_of_Hammurabi|Hammurabi Code]] and the [[Epic_of_Gilgamesh|Gilgamesh Epic]] from Mesopotamia, as well as the [[Egyptian_book_of_the_dead|the Egyptian Book of the Dead]].
===History===
[[History]] is systematically collected [[information]] about the [[past]]. When used as the name of a [[field of study]], ''history'' refers to the study and interpretation of the record of [[human]]s, [[family history|families]], and [[society|societies]]. [[Knowledge]] of history is often said to encompass both knowledge of past events and [[historical thinking]] skills.
Traditionally, the study of history has been considered a part of the humanities. However, in modern [[academia]], history is increasingly classified as a [[social science]], especially when [[chronology]] is the focus.
===Languages and literature===
The study of individual modern and classical languages form the backbone of modern study of the humanities, while the scientific study of language is known as [[linguistics]] and is a [[social science]]. Since many areas of the humanities such as literature, history and philosophy are based on language, changes in language can have a profound effect on the other humanities. Literature, covering a variety of uses of language including [[prose]] forms (such as the [[novel]]), [[poetry]] and [[drama]], also lies at the heart of the modern humanities curriculum. College-level programs in a [[foreign language]] usually include study of important works of the literature in that language, as well as the language itself (grammar, vocabulary, etc.).
One can equate a literature with a collection of [[Story|stories]], [[poem]]s, and [[play]]s that revolve around a particular topic. In this case, the stories, poems and plays may or may not have [[nationalism|nationalistic]] implications. The [[Western canon|Western Canon]] forms one such literature. The term "literature" has different meanings depending on who is using it and in what context. It could be applied broadly to mean any symbolic record, encompassing everything from images and [[sculpture]]s to letters. People may perceive a difference between "literature" and some popular forms of written work. The terms "[[literary fiction]]" and "[[literary merit]]" often serve to distinguish between individual works.
===Law===
Law in common parlance, means a rule which (unlike a rule of ethics) is capable of enforcement through institutions. Crimes Against Humanity, Geoffrey Robertson, Penguin, ISBN 9780141024639 The study of law crosses the boundaries between the social sciences and humanities, depending on one's view of research into its objectives and effects. Law is not always enforceable, especially in the international relations context. It has been defined as a "system of rules", Hart [[The Concept of Law]], Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-876122-8 as an "interpretive concept", Ronald Dworkin, Law's Empire, Harvard University Press ISBN 0674518365 to achieve justice, as an "authority" Joseph Raz, The Authority of Law Oxford University Press to mediate people's interests, and even as "the command of a sovereign, backed by the threat of a sanction". John Austin (legal philosopher) The Providence of Jurisprudence Determined . However one likes to think of law, it is a completely central social institution. Legal policy incorporates the practical manifestation of thinking from almost every [[social science]] and humanity. Laws are [[politic]]s, because politicians create them. Law is [[philosophy]], because moral and ethical persuasions shape their ideas. Law tells many of [[history]]'s stories, because statutes, case law and codifications build up over time. And law is economics, because any rule about [[contract]], [[tort]], [[property law]], [[labour law]], [[company law]] and many more can have long lasting effects on the distribution of wealth. The noun ''law'' derives from the late [[Old English language|Old English]] ''lagu'', meaning something laid down or fixed. see [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=law&searchmode=none Etymonline Dictionary] and the adjective ''legal'' comes from the Latin word ''lex''.see [http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/legal Mirriam-Webster's Dictionary]
===Performing arts===
The performing arts differ from the [[plastic arts]] insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some [[work of art|art object]]. Performing arts include [[acrobatics]], [[busking]], [[comedy]], [[dance]], [[magic (illusion)|magic]], [[music]], [[opera]], [[film]], [[juggling]], [[marching arts]], such as [[brass band]]s, and [[theatre]].
Artists who participate in these arts in front of an audience are called performers, including [[actor]]s, [[comedian]]s, [[dancer]]s, [[musician]]s, and [[singer]]s. Performing arts are also supported by workers in related fields, such as [[songwriting]] and [[stagecraft]]. Performers often adapt their [[physical appearance|appearance]], such as with [[costume]]s and [[cosmetics|stage makeup]], etc. There is also a specialized form of [[fine art]] in which the artists ''perform'' their work live to an audience. This is called [[Performance art]]. Most performance art also involves some form of plastic art, perhaps in the creation of [[Theatrical property|prop]]s. Dance was often referred to as a ''plastic art'' during the [[Modern dance]] era.
Music
Music as an academic discipline mainly focuses on two career paths, music [[performance]] (focused on the [[orchestra]] and the [[concert hall]]) and [[music education]] (training music teachers). Students learn to play [[musical instrument|instruments]], but also study [[music theory]], [[musicology]], [[history of music]] and [[musical composition|composition]]. In the liberal arts tradition, music is also used to broaden skills of non-musicians by teaching skills such as concentration and listening.
;Theatre
Theatre (or theater) (Greek "theatron", ''θέατρον'') is the branch of the [[performing arts]] concerned with [[acting]] out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, music, dance, sound and spectacle — indeed any one or more elements of the other performing arts. In addition to the standard narrative dialogue style, theatre takes such forms as [[opera]], [[ballet]], [[mime artist|mime]], [[kabuki]], [[classical Indian dance]], [[Chinese opera]], [[mummers' play]]s, and [[pantomime]].
Dance
Dance (from [[Old French]] ''dancier'', perhaps from [[Old Frankish language|Frankish]]) generally refers to [[human]] [[Motion (physics)|movement]] either used as a form of [[expression]] or presented in a [[social]], [[spirituality|spiritual]] or [[performance]] setting. Dance is also used to describe methods of [[non-verbal communication]] (see [[body language]]) between humans or [[animal]]s ([[Bee learning and communication#Dance language|bee dance]], mating dance), [[Motion (physics)|motion]] in inanimate objects (''the [[leaves]] danced in the [[wind]]''), and certain [[dance (musical form)|musical form]]s or [[music|genre]]s. [[Choreography]] is the art of making dances, and the person who does this is called a choreographer.
Definitions of what constitutes dance are dependent on [[Society|social]], [[Culture|cultural]], [[aesthetic]] [[artistic]] and [[moral]] constraints and range from functional movement (such as [[Folk dance]]) to codified, [[virtuoso]] techniques such as [[ballet]]. In [[sport]]s, [[gymnastics]], [[figure skating]] and [[synchronized swimming]] are ''dance'' disciplines while [[Martial arts]] '[[Kata (martial arts)|kata]]' are often compared to dances.
===Philosophy===
Philosophy is [[ancient Greek]] for the love of wisdom.
===Religion===
Most historians trace the beginnings of [[Religion|religious belief]] to the Neolithic Period. Most religious belief during this time period consisted of worship of a [[Mother Goddess]], a [[Sky Father]], and also worship of the [[Sun]] and the [[Moon]] as deities. (''see also [[Sun worship]]'')
New [[philosophy|philosophies]] and [[religions]] arose in both east and west, particularly around the [[6th century BC]]. Over time, a great variety of religions developed around the world, with [[Hinduism]] and [[Buddhism]] in [[India]], [[Zoroastrianism]] in [[Persian Empire|Persia]] being some of the earliest major faiths. In the east, three schools of thought were to dominate Chinese thinking until the modern day. These were [[Taoism]], [[Legalism (philosophy)|Legalism]], and [[Confucianism]]. The Confucian tradition, which would attain predominance, looked not to the force of law, but to the power and example of tradition for political morality. In the west, the Greek philosophical tradition, represented by the works of [[Plato]] and [[Aristotle]], was diffused throughout Europe and the Middle East by the conquests of [[Alexander of Macedon]] in the [[4th century BC]].
[[Abrahamic religion]]s are those [[religion]]s deriving from a common ancient [[Semitic]] tradition and traced by their adherents to [[Abraham]] (circa 1900 BCE), a [[Patriarchs (Bible)|patriarch]] whose life is narrated in the [[Hebrew Bible]]/[[Old Testament]], and as a [[prophets of Islam|prophet]] in the [[Quran]] and also called a prophet in Genesis 20:7. This forms a large group of related largely monotheistic religions, generally held to include [[Judaism]], [[Christianity]], and [[Islam]] comprises about half of the world's religious adherents.
===Visual arts===
The great traditions in [[art]] have a foundation in the art of one of the ancient civilizations, such as [[Ancient Egypt]], [[Ancient Greece|Greece]] and [[Ancient Rome|Rome]], [[China]], [[Indus Valley Civilization|India]], [[Mesopotamia]] and [[Mesoamerica]].
Ancient Greek art saw a veneration of the human physical form and the development of equivalent skills to show musculature, poise, beauty and anatomically correct proportions. [[Roman Empire|Ancient Roman]] art depicted gods as idealized humans, shown with characteristic distinguishing features (i.e. [[Zeus]]' thunderbolt).
In [[Byzantine art|Byzantine]] and [[Gothic art|Gothic]] art of the [[Middle Ages]], the dominance of the church insisted on the expression of biblical and not material truths. The [[Renaissance]] saw the return to valuation of the material world, and this shift is reflected in art forms, which show the corporeality of the human body, and the three-dimensional reality of landscape.
Eastern art has generally worked in a style akin to Western medieval art, namely a concentration on surface patterning and local colour (meaning the plain colour of an object, such as basic red for a red robe, rather than the modulations of that colour brought about by light, shade and reflection). A characteristic of this style is that the local colour is often defined by an outline (a contemporary equivalent is the cartoon). This is evident in, for example, the art of India, Tibet and Japan.
Religious [[Islam]]ic art forbids iconography, and expresses religious ideas through geometry instead. The physical and rational certainties depicted by the 19th-century Enlightenment were shattered not only by new discoveries of relativity by [[Albert Einstein|Einstein]] [http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1035752,00.html] and of unseen psychology by [[Sigmund Freud|Freud]], [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook36.html] but also by unprecedented technological development. Increasing [[globalization|global]] interaction during this time saw an equivalent influence of other cultures into Western art.
Media types
[[Drawing]] is a means of making an [[image]], using any of a wide variety of tools and techniques. It generally involves making marks on a surface by applying pressure from a tool, or moving a tool across a surface. Common tools are [[graphite]] [[pencil]]s, [[pen and ink]], [[ink]]ed [[brush]]es, wax [[color pencil]]s, [[crayon]]s, [[charcoal]]s, [[pastel]]s, and [[marker pen|marker]]s. Digital tools which simulate the effects of these are also used. The main techniques used in drawing are: line drawing, [[hatching]], crosshatching, random hatching, scribbling, [[stippling]], and blending. An artist who excels in drawing is referred to as a ''draftsman'' or ''draughtsman''.
Painting
[[Painting]] taken literally is the practice of applying [[pigment]] suspended in a carrier (or [[Paint#Components|medium]]) and a binding agent (a [[adhesive|glue]]) to a [[surface]] (support) such as [[paper]], [[canvas]] or a wall. However, when used in an artistic sense it means the use of this activity in combination with [[drawing]], [[composition (visual arts)|composition]] and other aesthetic considerations in order to manifest the expressive and conceptual intention of the practitioner. Painting is also used to express spiritual motifs and ideas; sites of this kind of painting range from artwork depicting mythological figures on pottery to [[Sistine Chapel|The Sistine Chapel]] to the human body itself.
[[Colour]] is the essence of painting as [[sound]] is of [[music]]. Colour is highly subjective, but has observable psychological effects, although these can differ from one culture to the next. Black is associated with mourning in the West, but elsewhere white may be. Some painters, theoreticians, writers and scientists, including [[Goethe]], [[Kandinsky]], [[Isaac Newton]], have written their own [[colour theory]]. Moreover the use of language is only a generalisation for a colour equivalent. The word "[[red]]", for example, can cover a wide range of variations on the pure red of the spectrum. There is not a formalised register of different colours in the way that there is agreement on different notes in music, such as [[musical notation|C]] or [[musical notation|C#]] in music, although the [[Pantone]] system is widely used in the printing and design industry for this purpose.
Modern artists have extended the practice of painting considerably to include, for example, [[collage]]. This began with [[cubism]] and is not painting in strict sense. Some modern painters incorporate different materials such as [[sand]], [[cement]], [[straw]] or [[wood]] for their [[Texture (painting)|texture]]. Examples of this are the works of [[Jean Dubuffet]] or [[Anselm Kiefer]]. Modern and contemporary art has moved away from the historic value of craft in favour of [[concept]]; this has led some to say that painting, as a serious art form, is dead, although this has not deterred the majority of artists from continuing to practise it either as whole or part of their work.
==Humanities history==
In the West, the study of the humanities can be traced to ancient Greece, as the basis of a broad education for citizens. During Roman times, the concept of the seven [[liberal arts]] evolved, involving [[grammar]], [[rhetoric]] and [[logic]] (the [[trivium (education)|trivium]]), along with [[arithmetic]], [[geometry]], [[astrology and astronomy|astronomia]] and [[music]] (the [[quadrivium]]). Levi, Albert W.; ''The Humanities Today'', Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 1970. These subjects formed the bulk of [[medieval]] education, with the emphasis being on the humanities as skills or "ways of doing."
A major shift occurred during the Renaissance, when the humanities began to be regarded as subjects to be studied rather than practised, with a corresponding shift away from the traditional fields into areas such as literature and history. In the 20th century, this view was in turn challenged by the [[postmodernism|postmodernist]] movement, which sought to redefine the humanities in more [[egalitarianism|egalitarian]] terms suitable for a [[democracy|democratic]] society. Walling, Donovan R.; ''Under Construction: The Role of the Arts and Humanities in Postmodern Schooling'' Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation, Bloomington, Indiana, 1997.
==Humanities today==
===Humanities in the United States===
Many American colleges and universities believe in the notion of a broad "liberal arts education", which requires all college students to study the humanities in addition to their specific area of study. Prominent proponents of liberal arts in the United States have included [[Mortimer J. Adler]] Adler, Mortimer J.; "A Guidebook to Learning: For the Lifelong Pursuit of Wisdom" and [[E.D. Hirsch]].
The 1980 [[United States]] Rockefeller Commission on the Humanities described the humanities in its report, ''The Humanities in American Life'':
"Through the humanities we reflect on the fundamental question: What does it mean to be human? The humanities offer clues but never a complete answer. They reveal how people have tried to make moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense of a world in which irrationality, despair, loneliness, and death are as conspicuous as birth, friendship, hope, and reason."
Criticism of the traditional humanities/liberal arts degree program has been leveled by many that see them as both expensive and relatively "useless" in the modern American job market, where several years of specialized study is required in many/most job fields. This is in direct contrast to the early 20th century when approximately 3% to 6% of the public at large had a university degree, and having one was a direct path to a professional life.
After [[World War II]], many millions of veterans took advantage of the [[GI Bill]]. Further expansion of federal education grants and loans have expanded the number of adults in the United States that have attended a college. In 2003, roughly 53% of the population had [[Educational attainment in the United States|some college education]] with 27.2% having graduated with a [[Educational attainment in the United States|Bachelors degree]] or higher, including 8% who graduated with a [[Educational attainment in the United States|graduate degree]].<ref name="US Census Bureau, educational attainment in 2003" [http://www.census.gov/prod/2oib;jobbjjbjb004pubs/p20-550.pdf|title=US] Census Bureau, educational attainment in 2003
===The digital age===
Language and literature are considered to be the central topics in humanities, so the impact of electronic communication is of great concern to those in the field. The immediacy of modern technology and the internet speeds up communication, but may threaten "deferred" forms of communication such as literature and "dumb down" language. The library is also changing rapidly as bookshelves are replaced by computer terminals. Despite the fact that humanities will have to adapt rapidly to these changes, it is unlikely that the traditional forms of literature will be completely abandoned.
==See also==
* [[Social science]]
* [[Human science]]
* [[The Two Cultures]]
* [[List of academic disciplines]]
* [[Public humanities]]
==External links==
*[http://www.nhc.rtp.nc.us/ National Humanities Center - USA]
*[http://www.hums.org.uk/ The Humanities Association - UK]
*[http://www.intute.ac.uk/artsandhumanities/ Intute: Arts and Humanities]
*[http://www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/AHR/ Australian Humanities Review]
*[http://www.humanities.org.au/ Australian Academy of the Humanities]
*[http://www.virginiafoundation.org/ Virginia Foundation for the Humanities]
*[http://www.mfh.org/ Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities]
*[http://www.michiganhumanities.org/ Michigan Humanities Council]
*[http://www.kyhumanities.org/ Kentucky Humanities Council]
*[http://www.indianahumanities.org/ Indiana Humanities Council]
*[http://www.observacionesfilosoficas.net/ Revista Observaciones Filosóficas]
[[Category: General Reference]]
[[Category: The Humanities]]
==Humanities fields==
===Classics===
The classics, in the Western academic tradition, refer to cultures of [[classical antiquity]], namely the Ancient Greek and Roman cultures. Classical study was formerly considered one of the cornerstones of the humanities, but the classics declined in importance during the [[20th century]]. Nevertheless, the influence of classical ideas in humanities such as philosophy and literature remain strong.
More broadly speaking, the "classics" are the foundational writings of the earliest major cultures of the World. In other major traditions, classics would refer to the [[Vedas]] and [[Upanishads]] in India, the writings of [[Lao-tse]] and [[Chuang-tzu]] in China, and writings such as the [[The_Code_of_Hammurabi|Hammurabi Code]] and the [[Epic_of_Gilgamesh|Gilgamesh Epic]] from Mesopotamia, as well as the [[Egyptian_book_of_the_dead|the Egyptian Book of the Dead]].
===History===
[[History]] is systematically collected [[information]] about the [[past]]. When used as the name of a [[field of study]], ''history'' refers to the study and interpretation of the record of [[human]]s, [[family history|families]], and [[society|societies]]. [[Knowledge]] of history is often said to encompass both knowledge of past events and [[historical thinking]] skills.
Traditionally, the study of history has been considered a part of the humanities. However, in modern [[academia]], history is increasingly classified as a [[social science]], especially when [[chronology]] is the focus.
===Languages and literature===
The study of individual modern and classical languages form the backbone of modern study of the humanities, while the scientific study of language is known as [[linguistics]] and is a [[social science]]. Since many areas of the humanities such as literature, history and philosophy are based on language, changes in language can have a profound effect on the other humanities. Literature, covering a variety of uses of language including [[prose]] forms (such as the [[novel]]), [[poetry]] and [[drama]], also lies at the heart of the modern humanities curriculum. College-level programs in a [[foreign language]] usually include study of important works of the literature in that language, as well as the language itself (grammar, vocabulary, etc.).
One can equate a literature with a collection of [[Story|stories]], [[poem]]s, and [[play]]s that revolve around a particular topic. In this case, the stories, poems and plays may or may not have [[nationalism|nationalistic]] implications. The [[Western canon|Western Canon]] forms one such literature. The term "literature" has different meanings depending on who is using it and in what context. It could be applied broadly to mean any symbolic record, encompassing everything from images and [[sculpture]]s to letters. People may perceive a difference between "literature" and some popular forms of written work. The terms "[[literary fiction]]" and "[[literary merit]]" often serve to distinguish between individual works.
===Law===
Law in common parlance, means a rule which (unlike a rule of ethics) is capable of enforcement through institutions. Crimes Against Humanity, Geoffrey Robertson, Penguin, ISBN 9780141024639 The study of law crosses the boundaries between the social sciences and humanities, depending on one's view of research into its objectives and effects. Law is not always enforceable, especially in the international relations context. It has been defined as a "system of rules", Hart [[The Concept of Law]], Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-876122-8 as an "interpretive concept", Ronald Dworkin, Law's Empire, Harvard University Press ISBN 0674518365 to achieve justice, as an "authority" Joseph Raz, The Authority of Law Oxford University Press to mediate people's interests, and even as "the command of a sovereign, backed by the threat of a sanction". John Austin (legal philosopher) The Providence of Jurisprudence Determined . However one likes to think of law, it is a completely central social institution. Legal policy incorporates the practical manifestation of thinking from almost every [[social science]] and humanity. Laws are [[politic]]s, because politicians create them. Law is [[philosophy]], because moral and ethical persuasions shape their ideas. Law tells many of [[history]]'s stories, because statutes, case law and codifications build up over time. And law is economics, because any rule about [[contract]], [[tort]], [[property law]], [[labour law]], [[company law]] and many more can have long lasting effects on the distribution of wealth. The noun ''law'' derives from the late [[Old English language|Old English]] ''lagu'', meaning something laid down or fixed. see [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=law&searchmode=none Etymonline Dictionary] and the adjective ''legal'' comes from the Latin word ''lex''.see [http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/legal Mirriam-Webster's Dictionary]
===Performing arts===
The performing arts differ from the [[plastic arts]] insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some [[work of art|art object]]. Performing arts include [[acrobatics]], [[busking]], [[comedy]], [[dance]], [[magic (illusion)|magic]], [[music]], [[opera]], [[film]], [[juggling]], [[marching arts]], such as [[brass band]]s, and [[theatre]].
Artists who participate in these arts in front of an audience are called performers, including [[actor]]s, [[comedian]]s, [[dancer]]s, [[musician]]s, and [[singer]]s. Performing arts are also supported by workers in related fields, such as [[songwriting]] and [[stagecraft]]. Performers often adapt their [[physical appearance|appearance]], such as with [[costume]]s and [[cosmetics|stage makeup]], etc. There is also a specialized form of [[fine art]] in which the artists ''perform'' their work live to an audience. This is called [[Performance art]]. Most performance art also involves some form of plastic art, perhaps in the creation of [[Theatrical property|prop]]s. Dance was often referred to as a ''plastic art'' during the [[Modern dance]] era.
Music
Music as an academic discipline mainly focuses on two career paths, music [[performance]] (focused on the [[orchestra]] and the [[concert hall]]) and [[music education]] (training music teachers). Students learn to play [[musical instrument|instruments]], but also study [[music theory]], [[musicology]], [[history of music]] and [[musical composition|composition]]. In the liberal arts tradition, music is also used to broaden skills of non-musicians by teaching skills such as concentration and listening.
;Theatre
Theatre (or theater) (Greek "theatron", ''θέατρον'') is the branch of the [[performing arts]] concerned with [[acting]] out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, music, dance, sound and spectacle — indeed any one or more elements of the other performing arts. In addition to the standard narrative dialogue style, theatre takes such forms as [[opera]], [[ballet]], [[mime artist|mime]], [[kabuki]], [[classical Indian dance]], [[Chinese opera]], [[mummers' play]]s, and [[pantomime]].
Dance
Dance (from [[Old French]] ''dancier'', perhaps from [[Old Frankish language|Frankish]]) generally refers to [[human]] [[Motion (physics)|movement]] either used as a form of [[expression]] or presented in a [[social]], [[spirituality|spiritual]] or [[performance]] setting. Dance is also used to describe methods of [[non-verbal communication]] (see [[body language]]) between humans or [[animal]]s ([[Bee learning and communication#Dance language|bee dance]], mating dance), [[Motion (physics)|motion]] in inanimate objects (''the [[leaves]] danced in the [[wind]]''), and certain [[dance (musical form)|musical form]]s or [[music|genre]]s. [[Choreography]] is the art of making dances, and the person who does this is called a choreographer.
Definitions of what constitutes dance are dependent on [[Society|social]], [[Culture|cultural]], [[aesthetic]] [[artistic]] and [[moral]] constraints and range from functional movement (such as [[Folk dance]]) to codified, [[virtuoso]] techniques such as [[ballet]]. In [[sport]]s, [[gymnastics]], [[figure skating]] and [[synchronized swimming]] are ''dance'' disciplines while [[Martial arts]] '[[Kata (martial arts)|kata]]' are often compared to dances.
===Philosophy===
Philosophy is [[ancient Greek]] for the love of wisdom.
===Religion===
Most historians trace the beginnings of [[Religion|religious belief]] to the Neolithic Period. Most religious belief during this time period consisted of worship of a [[Mother Goddess]], a [[Sky Father]], and also worship of the [[Sun]] and the [[Moon]] as deities. (''see also [[Sun worship]]'')
New [[philosophy|philosophies]] and [[religions]] arose in both east and west, particularly around the [[6th century BC]]. Over time, a great variety of religions developed around the world, with [[Hinduism]] and [[Buddhism]] in [[India]], [[Zoroastrianism]] in [[Persian Empire|Persia]] being some of the earliest major faiths. In the east, three schools of thought were to dominate Chinese thinking until the modern day. These were [[Taoism]], [[Legalism (philosophy)|Legalism]], and [[Confucianism]]. The Confucian tradition, which would attain predominance, looked not to the force of law, but to the power and example of tradition for political morality. In the west, the Greek philosophical tradition, represented by the works of [[Plato]] and [[Aristotle]], was diffused throughout Europe and the Middle East by the conquests of [[Alexander of Macedon]] in the [[4th century BC]].
[[Abrahamic religion]]s are those [[religion]]s deriving from a common ancient [[Semitic]] tradition and traced by their adherents to [[Abraham]] (circa 1900 BCE), a [[Patriarchs (Bible)|patriarch]] whose life is narrated in the [[Hebrew Bible]]/[[Old Testament]], and as a [[prophets of Islam|prophet]] in the [[Quran]] and also called a prophet in Genesis 20:7. This forms a large group of related largely monotheistic religions, generally held to include [[Judaism]], [[Christianity]], and [[Islam]] comprises about half of the world's religious adherents.
===Visual arts===
The great traditions in [[art]] have a foundation in the art of one of the ancient civilizations, such as [[Ancient Egypt]], [[Ancient Greece|Greece]] and [[Ancient Rome|Rome]], [[China]], [[Indus Valley Civilization|India]], [[Mesopotamia]] and [[Mesoamerica]].
Ancient Greek art saw a veneration of the human physical form and the development of equivalent skills to show musculature, poise, beauty and anatomically correct proportions. [[Roman Empire|Ancient Roman]] art depicted gods as idealized humans, shown with characteristic distinguishing features (i.e. [[Zeus]]' thunderbolt).
In [[Byzantine art|Byzantine]] and [[Gothic art|Gothic]] art of the [[Middle Ages]], the dominance of the church insisted on the expression of biblical and not material truths. The [[Renaissance]] saw the return to valuation of the material world, and this shift is reflected in art forms, which show the corporeality of the human body, and the three-dimensional reality of landscape.
Eastern art has generally worked in a style akin to Western medieval art, namely a concentration on surface patterning and local colour (meaning the plain colour of an object, such as basic red for a red robe, rather than the modulations of that colour brought about by light, shade and reflection). A characteristic of this style is that the local colour is often defined by an outline (a contemporary equivalent is the cartoon). This is evident in, for example, the art of India, Tibet and Japan.
Religious [[Islam]]ic art forbids iconography, and expresses religious ideas through geometry instead. The physical and rational certainties depicted by the 19th-century Enlightenment were shattered not only by new discoveries of relativity by [[Albert Einstein|Einstein]] [http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1035752,00.html] and of unseen psychology by [[Sigmund Freud|Freud]], [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook36.html] but also by unprecedented technological development. Increasing [[globalization|global]] interaction during this time saw an equivalent influence of other cultures into Western art.
Media types
[[Drawing]] is a means of making an [[image]], using any of a wide variety of tools and techniques. It generally involves making marks on a surface by applying pressure from a tool, or moving a tool across a surface. Common tools are [[graphite]] [[pencil]]s, [[pen and ink]], [[ink]]ed [[brush]]es, wax [[color pencil]]s, [[crayon]]s, [[charcoal]]s, [[pastel]]s, and [[marker pen|marker]]s. Digital tools which simulate the effects of these are also used. The main techniques used in drawing are: line drawing, [[hatching]], crosshatching, random hatching, scribbling, [[stippling]], and blending. An artist who excels in drawing is referred to as a ''draftsman'' or ''draughtsman''.
Painting
[[Painting]] taken literally is the practice of applying [[pigment]] suspended in a carrier (or [[Paint#Components|medium]]) and a binding agent (a [[adhesive|glue]]) to a [[surface]] (support) such as [[paper]], [[canvas]] or a wall. However, when used in an artistic sense it means the use of this activity in combination with [[drawing]], [[composition (visual arts)|composition]] and other aesthetic considerations in order to manifest the expressive and conceptual intention of the practitioner. Painting is also used to express spiritual motifs and ideas; sites of this kind of painting range from artwork depicting mythological figures on pottery to [[Sistine Chapel|The Sistine Chapel]] to the human body itself.
[[Colour]] is the essence of painting as [[sound]] is of [[music]]. Colour is highly subjective, but has observable psychological effects, although these can differ from one culture to the next. Black is associated with mourning in the West, but elsewhere white may be. Some painters, theoreticians, writers and scientists, including [[Goethe]], [[Kandinsky]], [[Isaac Newton]], have written their own [[colour theory]]. Moreover the use of language is only a generalisation for a colour equivalent. The word "[[red]]", for example, can cover a wide range of variations on the pure red of the spectrum. There is not a formalised register of different colours in the way that there is agreement on different notes in music, such as [[musical notation|C]] or [[musical notation|C#]] in music, although the [[Pantone]] system is widely used in the printing and design industry for this purpose.
Modern artists have extended the practice of painting considerably to include, for example, [[collage]]. This began with [[cubism]] and is not painting in strict sense. Some modern painters incorporate different materials such as [[sand]], [[cement]], [[straw]] or [[wood]] for their [[Texture (painting)|texture]]. Examples of this are the works of [[Jean Dubuffet]] or [[Anselm Kiefer]]. Modern and contemporary art has moved away from the historic value of craft in favour of [[concept]]; this has led some to say that painting, as a serious art form, is dead, although this has not deterred the majority of artists from continuing to practise it either as whole or part of their work.
==Humanities history==
In the West, the study of the humanities can be traced to ancient Greece, as the basis of a broad education for citizens. During Roman times, the concept of the seven [[liberal arts]] evolved, involving [[grammar]], [[rhetoric]] and [[logic]] (the [[trivium (education)|trivium]]), along with [[arithmetic]], [[geometry]], [[astrology and astronomy|astronomia]] and [[music]] (the [[quadrivium]]). Levi, Albert W.; ''The Humanities Today'', Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 1970. These subjects formed the bulk of [[medieval]] education, with the emphasis being on the humanities as skills or "ways of doing."
A major shift occurred during the Renaissance, when the humanities began to be regarded as subjects to be studied rather than practised, with a corresponding shift away from the traditional fields into areas such as literature and history. In the 20th century, this view was in turn challenged by the [[postmodernism|postmodernist]] movement, which sought to redefine the humanities in more [[egalitarianism|egalitarian]] terms suitable for a [[democracy|democratic]] society. Walling, Donovan R.; ''Under Construction: The Role of the Arts and Humanities in Postmodern Schooling'' Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation, Bloomington, Indiana, 1997.
==Humanities today==
===Humanities in the United States===
Many American colleges and universities believe in the notion of a broad "liberal arts education", which requires all college students to study the humanities in addition to their specific area of study. Prominent proponents of liberal arts in the United States have included [[Mortimer J. Adler]] Adler, Mortimer J.; "A Guidebook to Learning: For the Lifelong Pursuit of Wisdom" and [[E.D. Hirsch]].
The 1980 [[United States]] Rockefeller Commission on the Humanities described the humanities in its report, ''The Humanities in American Life'':
"Through the humanities we reflect on the fundamental question: What does it mean to be human? The humanities offer clues but never a complete answer. They reveal how people have tried to make moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense of a world in which irrationality, despair, loneliness, and death are as conspicuous as birth, friendship, hope, and reason."
Criticism of the traditional humanities/liberal arts degree program has been leveled by many that see them as both expensive and relatively "useless" in the modern American job market, where several years of specialized study is required in many/most job fields. This is in direct contrast to the early 20th century when approximately 3% to 6% of the public at large had a university degree, and having one was a direct path to a professional life.
After [[World War II]], many millions of veterans took advantage of the [[GI Bill]]. Further expansion of federal education grants and loans have expanded the number of adults in the United States that have attended a college. In 2003, roughly 53% of the population had [[Educational attainment in the United States|some college education]] with 27.2% having graduated with a [[Educational attainment in the United States|Bachelors degree]] or higher, including 8% who graduated with a [[Educational attainment in the United States|graduate degree]].<ref name="US Census Bureau, educational attainment in 2003" [http://www.census.gov/prod/2oib;jobbjjbjb004pubs/p20-550.pdf|title=US] Census Bureau, educational attainment in 2003
===The digital age===
Language and literature are considered to be the central topics in humanities, so the impact of electronic communication is of great concern to those in the field. The immediacy of modern technology and the internet speeds up communication, but may threaten "deferred" forms of communication such as literature and "dumb down" language. The library is also changing rapidly as bookshelves are replaced by computer terminals. Despite the fact that humanities will have to adapt rapidly to these changes, it is unlikely that the traditional forms of literature will be completely abandoned.
==See also==
* [[Social science]]
* [[Human science]]
* [[The Two Cultures]]
* [[List of academic disciplines]]
* [[Public humanities]]
==External links==
*[http://www.nhc.rtp.nc.us/ National Humanities Center - USA]
*[http://www.hums.org.uk/ The Humanities Association - UK]
*[http://www.intute.ac.uk/artsandhumanities/ Intute: Arts and Humanities]
*[http://www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/AHR/ Australian Humanities Review]
*[http://www.humanities.org.au/ Australian Academy of the Humanities]
*[http://www.virginiafoundation.org/ Virginia Foundation for the Humanities]
*[http://www.mfh.org/ Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities]
*[http://www.michiganhumanities.org/ Michigan Humanities Council]
*[http://www.kyhumanities.org/ Kentucky Humanities Council]
*[http://www.indianahumanities.org/ Indiana Humanities Council]
*[http://www.observacionesfilosoficas.net/ Revista Observaciones Filosóficas]
[[Category: General Reference]]
[[Category: The Humanities]]
