In this short and powerful book, celebrated philosopher Martha Nussbaum makes
a passionate case for the importance of the liberal arts at all levels of
education. Historically, the humanities have been central to education because
they have rightly been seen as essential for creating competent democratic
citizens. But recently, Nussbaum argues, thinking about the aims of education
has gone disturbingly awry both in the United States and abroad. Anxiously
focused on national economic growth, we increasingly treat education as though
its primary goal were to teach students to be economically productive rather
than to think critically and become knowledgeable and empathetic citizens.
This shortsighted focus on profitable skills has eroded our ability to criticize
authority, reduced our sympathy with the marginalized and different, and damaged
our competence to deal with complex global problems. And the loss of these basic
capacities jeopardizes the health of democracies and the hope of a decent world.
In response to this dire situation, Nussbaum argues that we must resist efforts
to reduce education to a tool of the gross national product. Rather, we must
work to reconnect education to the humanities in order to give students the
capacity to be true democratic citizens of their countries and the world.
Drawing on the stories of troubling--and hopeful--educational developments from
around the world, Nussbaum offers a manifesto that should be a rallying cry for
anyone who cares about the deepest purposes of education.

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