Confessions of a B.Sc.

I was raised by wonderfully liberal, feminist parents who always told me I could do anything I wanted … as long as it was science. OK, that last part was unspoken but both my sister and I got the message (chemistry and biology, respectively). Sure we were exposed to history, literature, art (I'm talking Louvre and British Museum), classical music and dance, etc. But somehow it was clear that these were spectator sports, not something you did for a living.

As a result, my formal education was almost entirely scientific. Of course science students are required to take some arts and humanities courses, but what class one chooses is usually a matter of what fits into the timetable and will yield an "easy A." I was especially limited in university as I pursued a double-major that overfilled my curriculum and left no room for anything outside my area of interest. Not that this bothered me—the arts and humanities were delightful but inscrutable mysteries to me. Being an INTJ, the social side of my brain is rather undeveloped, and without much in the way of life experience, relating to the human condition was really not an option for me in my youth.

But I wasn't completely lost to the world of ideas and culture. For some reason, when I chose my university, one of the selling points was the Classics department. I had a strange desire to take at least one year of those classes, despite their intimidating descriptions. Unfortunately the department turned out to be on hiatus, and my desire to obtain a classical education faded … until now.

I think I can trace my current mania for a classical education back to when I saw the wonderful 1995 film adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion. Sure, I had seen literary dramatizations before, and had even read one or two books as a result, but those were isolated incidents. But one Austen book led to another, and another, and then to Brontë and Hardy (with a very enjoyable side trip to Middle Earth to see what all the fuss was about). I gradually became aware that there was a whole exciting and important world of literature that I had missed out on, and that with some life experience under my belt I was in a position to appreciate these works.

By chance I was also exposed to René Girard's original theory of human violence, which draws heavily on classics, both ancient and modern. I was seeing references to works I had never heard of but which apparently revealed the deepest secrets of human nature. I finally came to the conclusion that I needed a complete education in the arts and humanities if I wanted to understand … well, everything.

Enter the Great Books of the Western World. What could be more convenient than the classics of western civilization gathered together in one place? Well, the price tag is not too convenient, so while I save up my pennies I am learning how to study the "great books," so that when those precious 60 volumes arrive I will know what to do with them. Wish me luck.