Why Humanities?

SALONI KARKI

Every time I am asked about my faculty, I proudly say that I am a humanities student, to which people give a rather shocked or unimpressed look. Typically, they ask me, why humanities? If not, their facial expression does the questioning.

I am a senior high school student studying humanities at present. This field of study is thought of as incompetent in Nepali society. People mostly assume that either those who cannot study or those who don’t like to study choose this. When I first told my family about my interest in the humanities, they looked concerned like any other family would be due to their bad reputation in society. 

However, they never really objected to my choice, which is why I could study humanities without any protest.

As time passed, people started being curious about why I had taken humanities. Especially, after my father immediately tells them about the fact that I scored 3.95 in my SEE (to let them know that it was not because I cannot study). I would always link my interest to this stream with my aim, until my recent visit to Gorkhapatra Sansthan. We were taken on an expedition to the organisation. I got to learn about so many new things there. 

I never really knew what the oldest media house in the country looked like. As we were touring the area, I realised, "Ah, this is why!" Not because I have a goal for which a humanities degree is enough but to explore new places, discover new things, and experience new feelings. It also reminded me of the time I got to make a short film on climate change with my friends. It got published on the Facebook page of The British Council. The humanities provided me with that opportunity.

New experiences give me enormous joy. Nevertheless, I also get easily bored by them if they stay any longer. Thus, I was confused at the beginning of the session about whether it was the new experience or the syllabus itself that was pleasing to me. 

Now, I realise it was the teachers. A good teacher is all it takes. They can make studying as enjoyable as they can without making it dull.

Likewise, it also came to my mind that the curriculum alone isn’t helping me; it is also my friends. They have helped keep the environment stress-free at school. This is why I love the humanities. I am always grateful for the connections I can create and the knowledge I can acquire from this subject. 

That’s why if I am ever asked again, 'Why humanities?', instead of talking about what I am expecting to gain from it, I will talk about what I have gained from it.

Grade: XII, St. Marry Higher Secondary School, Jawalakhel