With many thanks to our awesome curator, Karen Celano, you can delve into a faith-related news article each Wednesday! Karen writes:
What's the point in receiving an elite, expensive education if "all you want to do" is become a stay-at-home parent? This Princeton graduate weighs in: http://verilymag.com/feature/o-alma-mater/
This article points out the many ways in which simply being a parent is not valued as an "accomplishment" in American society, nor is education valued as an end in itself but only as a means to other ends. Such a devaluation of parenting and education as an end-in-itself makes sense in a utilitarian and overly capitalistic society, but the author reveals a serious flaw in such thinking. If the only things we value are the means by which we achieve an end, then ultimately nothing can be an "end in itself" - something with intrinsic value. Nothing - whether education, or parenting, or even human life itself - can be seen as having inherent worth when we only value what enables us to achieve other goals. In such a utilitarian culture, simply being a parent is a deeply radical choice. Parenting demands that we be willing to sacrifice our goals and expectations in the process of allowing another human being space to develop and grow. And, with regard to the question of "at what point is a [person] not worth educating at all?," I would argue that human beings have a right to an education simply because they are human beings with creative and intelligent minds made in the image of God. No other justification is needed.
What's the point in receiving an elite, expensive education if "all you want to do" is become a stay-at-home parent? This Princeton graduate weighs in: http://verilymag.com/feature/o-alma-mater/
This article points out the many ways in which simply being a parent is not valued as an "accomplishment" in American society, nor is education valued as an end in itself but only as a means to other ends. Such a devaluation of parenting and education as an end-in-itself makes sense in a utilitarian and overly capitalistic society, but the author reveals a serious flaw in such thinking. If the only things we value are the means by which we achieve an end, then ultimately nothing can be an "end in itself" - something with intrinsic value. Nothing - whether education, or parenting, or even human life itself - can be seen as having inherent worth when we only value what enables us to achieve other goals. In such a utilitarian culture, simply being a parent is a deeply radical choice. Parenting demands that we be willing to sacrifice our goals and expectations in the process of allowing another human being space to develop and grow. And, with regard to the question of "at what point is a [person] not worth educating at all?," I would argue that human beings have a right to an education simply because they are human beings with creative and intelligent minds made in the image of God. No other justification is needed.
Posts
0 comments :
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.