Alice's Musings On Life

Why should we all go to school? Well, not everyone, but some people. There was a time when all you needed to know was not learned in school. There was a time when you could try to learn all the academic knowledge available and be a Renaissance Man (Person). That is no longer a viable option, so now we choose a specialization, learn as much as we can about that, and then enter the never-ending phase of keeping up with the new and emerging information about that field. On the one hand, that feels daunting, but it also feels dynamic and exciting. Was it Robert Heinlein who said, “Specialization is for insects?” I sometimes feel torn between wanting to be more of a generalist, maybe more interdisciplinary, which feels more Renaissance. Perhaps I’ve just been reading too much about Frances Yates lately.