Abstract
The liberal arts college and the institution of the liberal arts are distinct entities with the latter being more widespread. The liberal arts as an institution and approach to pedagogy is an impediment to higher educating large populations. They are a fantasy form of success retroactively named into existence as superior institutions to suit the desires and relevant self-interest of those doing the naming. The naming of success and superiority necessitates a named inferiority for colleges that are not liberal arts colleges. Created at a time when few people attended university, liberal arts colleges are (mis)recognized as places that develop economic, social, and cultural success for people whereas causality was the other way around: elite members of society went to college giving the false appearance that liberal arts colleges produced such people. In place of named success and leadership, liberal education should have emancipation as its core mission.
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Lowrie, A. (2018). The Death Rattle of the Liberal Arts. In: Understanding Branding in Higher Education. Marketing and Communication in Higher Education. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-56071-1_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-56071-1_6
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