Do Philosophy or History or Literature majors have any role to play in society? Are these essentially luxury goods whose consumption is detracting from other, more "serious" majors like Physics or Mathematics? There is an increasing push to tailor education for commercial purposes. University after university has dropped or slashed liberal arts majors because they are not thought to be marketable. At the same time, the economy has become increasingly technical with a correspondingly higher demand for technically trained people.
This is not simply an academic debate. This is a debate for the heart and soul of a society. Economic growth depends on increasing technological skills. Thus universities which prepare future workers should concentrate on technical subjects. The problem lies in the increasing technological skills part. As the overall knowledge base in any field increases, it becomes more and more difficult for an individual to have an overall command of the subject. So perforce, individuals have to go for specialization. Even in this narrower area, developments are so rapid that there is a constant struggle to remain up to date.
Along with this rapid pace of technological change, a convergence of different technologies is simultaneously occurring. All of this is lauded as being unquestionably positive. However, these technologies are also having a major impact in the way in which we interact with each other. For example, social media has made possible connections with people whom an individual would not otherwise meet. There is greater and easier access to different types of information. It is possible to link up with friends using apps. Romances have blossomed and marriages have occurred because the protagonists met through Facebook or Twitter or email.
It is not just technological change that is occurring. There is rapid and massive societal change also occurring due to this technological change but which is also simultaneously feeding the latter. Social mores and values are being affected. The question is how do we determine whether these changes are positive or negative? Infact what do we mean by a positive or negative social change is a question that needs to be debated. So who is going to do that? The technically trained major? This person is taught a narrow subject. He/she is largely unaware of developments outside their area of expertise. However, this is an area where the "soft skill" majors do well. Liberal arts tends to train individuals to think, question, analyse and recommend. So the question actually should be can we as a society afford not to have liberal arts majors?
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