Orators & Philosophers: A History of the Idea of Liberal Education.

Overview & Synopsis

The history of liberal education is the story of a debate between orators, whose tradition stresses commitment to a body of civic knowledge derived from texts, and philosophers from whom our modern notion of formal science and specialized research originates. The story is very old--not only historically as it begins with Socrates and Plato--but also historiographically, because it has long been evident in the writings of modern scholars such as Hans von Arnim, Werner Jaeger, and Henri Marrow. It is also quite new in that no volume about the historical roots of "liberal education" in the United States has taken adequate account of this background. The volume presents an interpretation of the history of the ideals underlying the education that has been identified as "liberal." Certain conclusions have influenced the presentation: U. S. higher education in the second half of the 20th century holds Socrates, rather than Cicero, as its paragon; the purpose, rationale, structure, and content of its liberal education are, in a fundamental sense, Socratic and Platonic; and it is the nature of liberal education to report concerns in line with the philosophical ideal of liberal education, the continuing, ever-critical search for truth. (BZ)