Humanities are large and varied academic disciplines which study the cultural, historical, intellectual, and social aspects of human life. In recent years, however, the word humanities has been increasingly applied to natural sciences, as well. For example, in the recent NASPA definition of the word, humanities and physical sciences are entirely separate and distinct subjects. Natural sciences typically study the physical world, while humanities typically study the cultural or social aspects of that world. In addition to natural sciences, humanities also include philosophy, sociology, history, English, and even engineering. The blending of humanities and other academic fields is becoming more common as well.
There are four main areas of humanities research: social sciences, humanities of arts, natural sciences, and liberal arts. These categories span the full spectrum of academic pursuits and include such fields as art, literature, history, and film studies. Cultural studies, political science, psychology, sociology, and even mathematics form a part of the liberal arts. All of these areas offer opportunities for students to pursue research in different ways, depending on their major areas of concentration.
One of humanities’ largest concentrations is in the field of literature. There are numerous literature programs available, including poetry, literary criticism, and translation studies. The Classics Program at Harvard University, for example, specializes in American literature. Other areas of specific interest in the humanities include American Studies, Comparative linguistics, Philosophy, and Religion and Humanities. The Renaissance Scholars Program, founded by scholars Alfred G. Thomas, Edward E. Larson, and John J. Johnson, focuses on the works of ancient philosophers and Renaissance scholars.
One of the most prominent areas of humanities study is a comparative analysis, which compares one existing discipline to another. For example, a comparison could be made between mythology and astronomy. Both have similarities, but each has its own unique aspect. Comparative analysis is an important part of all the other academic disciplines, including history, geology, and paleontology. The major component of comparative study is the comparative study of culture, including comparative analysis of language, literature, arts, and politics.
One of humanities’ biggest influences is science, since the major part of humanities studies is a comparative study of the world around us. This includes everything from anthropology and archeology to genetics and ecolonization. There are many examples of scientific influence in humanities, such as Shakespeare and quantum mechanics. Other examples include the works of ancient Romans and Greeks, such as Ovid, Virgil, and Homer.
Philosophy is one of humanities’ largest influences, since most philosophies are built on some sort of natural sciences. For example, if you study the philosophy of science you will likely study natural science. That is to say that you read books about quantum mechanics or Einstein’s theory of relativity. However, one can also study philosophy of humanities, such as philosophy of arts, law, literature, theater, or religion.
One main difference between humanities and the other academic disciplines is that humanities study usually begins with a question, as opposed to a thesis. Another difference is that humanities studies vary greatly in scale, variety, and focus. In other words, one could study ancient Greece and Rome, while studying petroleum engineering today. And of course, one could read a book about religion in the humanities, while learning about ancient civilisations in the sciences. For more information on this topic, please see the main article linked below.
