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Originally Posted by Glice
I think the idea that the solitary function of education is for the market is erroneous. I can understand people getting hacked off with students having a good time at the taxpayer's expense, but if all university is is training for the marketplace then you have a much duller culture. I make the exception for directly and unequivocally vocational courses like medicine.
The other thing is that it simply isn't the case that people can educate themselves with libraries and the internet. I have a degree in philosophy. As we all know, this amounts to roughly fuck all in real, economic terms. But if I was left floundering in my local library, my philosophical horizons would expand no further than the usual suspects - Sartre, Plato - and even if I did come across Hegel, there's no way I'd have the critical tools to engage with him. And that's not to mention those figures you only really come across by meeting people who know a lot about a subject. I can't imagine anyone has ever come across heterodox Chinese economics and Feyerabend in the same week entirely by accident. Both expanded my horizons, one of them largely forgotten. From another perspective, I've never studied music and it's taken me far, far longer to come to terms with R Strauss and Sibelius when most composition students get to grips with them in their first year.
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I wouldn't dispute that....but most people (sadly enough) aren't interested in education. Most go to school because they don't want to disappoint, or because they have been told it is necessary. And of course, depending on what one wants to do...
sometimes it is necessary. I just don't buy into that "if you want to make a living you must go to college" garbage high school teachers and parents often like to threaten kids with. I don't buy into it, because it is in fact bullshit.
+ As far as those interested in educating themselves....I'm still firmly convinced one can on most topics, including philosophy. Of course, the college experience might introduce one to certain ideas faster than personal research....but with the internet most shit is out there. It's really not much different than the way music used to be before the internet. There were a few years there to where most info. I could gather on a band like the Melvins was pulled from Nirvana bios/liner notes/word of mouth/and the very occasional 'zine article. These days, someone can mention most any band (sans perhaps one that started two weeks ago and hasn't ventured outside of the garage) and there will be a wealth of knowledge online. Same goes with philosophy. Surely, there are theories I'm not aware of....but if one mentions something that goes beyond just a personal idea....I can probably find info online.
I'm willing to bet most of the information you gathered from your text books can be found online.
Maybe I'm wrong. I'm interested in philosophy, but not from a students standpoint. Most students would refer to me as a "dirt-road" philosopher at best. My only studies on the subject come from a 12th grade comparative religion course (which covered the Kants, Nietzsches, etc), everything else mostly boils down to personal ideas or conversations I have with others. A strong, yet still just passing, interest. It comes and goes....and usually little focus goes into it if I'm happy/content.