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E-book Value and the Humanities : The Neoliberal University and Our Victorian Inheritance
Articulating value through a demonstration of humanities practices resists being coerced into a reactive position against economics. Despite recent policy that encourages higher education to be entirely motivated by fiscal targets, the humanities continue to inspire and aspire beyond these lim-its. Who should define the humanities? Where do we draw the lines of disciplinary definition? How do our humanities differ from institutional definitions in the past? The inspiration for this book is the challenging question of how to articulate the value of, rather than to defend and define, the humanities within the neoliberal university.Therefore, throughout this book, I suggest that it is necessary to pursue not just one but many alternative routes to the valuation of the humanities. Accordingly, the chapters each present a different route and representation of value. This heterogeneity is appropriate given that the work of the humanities is multi-faceted. As the pluralised word ‘humanities’ indicates, there is not one study of ‘humanity’. Instead, this book considers a series of diverse relationships which collectively form a collage of mutually reinforcing values. In doing so, I follow my belief that the humanities must embrace non-hierarchical and open-ended practices. An articulation of the value of the humanities encom-passes the lives, ideas, and values of people as opposed to their instrumental use as products.
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