Humanities: A Tool for Critical Thinking and Democracy
Caroline Fourgeaud-Laville aims to show in this insightful and lively book how essential humanities (Greek, Latin, philosophy, philology, ancient history) are to us and why it is urgent to give them a greater place.
Away from the biases one may have, studying their relevance and modernity allows, according to her, to demonstrate that they are a true source of empowerment and development of critical thinking in service of democracy and the fight against prejudices.
The author of this book is a specialist in ancient Greece, but also the founder of an association, Eurἵka, which promotes the transmission of ancient languages, and Greek in particular, to a young audience, from primary school. She sees it as an excellent tool for empowerment and citizenship.
Rehabilitating Humanities
It is true that the study of Greek and Latin has been disappearing in recent years. So, she asks:
“Why have humanities suddenly become burdensome enough to want to remove them from education programs? Perhaps we need to see them under attack to fully appreciate their values and qualities? Thus, the periodic duel reemerges, pitting an elite mourning the ineffectiveness of ancient languages against politicians who are supposedly incapable of facing the modern world. Moral works, war memories, philosophy in the face of politics, history of peoples, war treaties, funeral orations or pleas, these texts are highly critical and full of teachings, so it is not surprising that our ministers, Prime Ministers, or other elected officials have considered them as formidable competitors. Humanities sharpen minds, making them less manipulable.”
Reflecting on recent history to explain what led to the decline of humanities, she highlights the opposition between classics and moderns, as in the time of Boileau and Perrault, with the latter seeking to value modern languages at the expense of ancient languages.
“The challenge of reconciling language and culture is the only one that matters if we want to continue educating while informing. Current educators now manage to reconcile culture and intuitive language learning, as language mastery conditions our understanding of culture.”
Teaching Ancient Greek from a Young Age
She shows the beneficial effects of learning ancient Greek on attention disorders. These effects have been proven, she asserts, by all tests and research conducted.
Thus, a project to teach ancient Greek to children in primary schools in different countries was initiated. In France, Caroline Fourgeaud-Laville contributes to this through the Eurἵka association.
These educational methods aim to reconcile language and culture by forming while informing. “Mastering the language conditions our understanding of culture,” and relying on digital resources allows for a dynamic approach to both written and oral language, familiarizing students more easily with Latin or Greek.
She also emphasizes that in the Internet era and with the rise of Artificial Intelligence, personal culture remains irreplaceable. New technologies should be considered mere aids and not replace our creativity and freedom.
The Risks Associated with Knowledge Loss
Caroline Fourgeaud-Laville poses the hypothesis of what would happen if an authoritarian power decided to remove a portion of knowledge from data centers today or tomorrow.
“Data warfare is a dangerous and strategic reality, where knowledge is a war loot that can be coveted, hacked, or diverted.”
When she mentions the virtues of the core, it brings to mind Ray Bradbury’s famous novel “Fahrenheit 451,” where a few resistors ensure the perpetuation of knowledge.
The Dialogue with Thucydides
In one of her chapters, Caroline Fourgeaud-Laville discusses the heritage – or rather the dialogue with – Thucydides or Herodotus, showing the importance of studying humanities and not letting them fade into oblivion.
Returning once again to reading and studying the classics, their value extends beyond the past knowledge, influencing analyses of our current world and future, contrary to conformities.
In conclusion, let us give the final word to the author of this invigorating book:
“The approaches researchers have today regarding the ancient world allow us to place it in all its complexity and retain its essential values. The Greek and Latin languages must necessarily remain at the source of classical studies because the texts written in these languages make us think, offering us the building blocks for critical thinking and the development of insight. They are not models of virtue, but tools for thinking well.”
