November 21, 2003

Liberal Arts and the Mass Market

By JOHN A. FLOWER

The millions of first-generation undergraduates now in mass-market institutions, like regional state universities and community colleges, have had little to no exposure to the power of thought within the liberal arts. They have no great interest in the life of the mind. The lack of experience on the part of these students in how to handle ideas -- as contrasted to the immediate, hedonistic response of their senses -- is both a national disgrace and a disaster. The inherent