One of the first lessons a classical education teaches is the importance of defining terms at the outset of a conversation. For instance, if in the course of a discussion on politics an interlocutor casts conservatism in Burkean terms to another wearing a MAGA hat, a breakdown in communication is likely. Both represent something called conservatism, but they each understand it differently. For a conversation between our politicos to be fruitful rather than frustrating, it behooves them to define their terms before dialoguing in earnest. To apply this principle to the present subject, a discussion about the universal benefits of a classical liberal arts education raises questions about what we mean by two important terms—a classical education and its benefits. If we establish the term classical liberal arts education to mean an education oriented toward acquiring wisdom and virtue by means of the dialectic and composed of the Great Books and the liberal arts, then the inquiry at hand is what do we mean by benefit?

    The modern West nearly always casts benefit in terms of material gain, whether financial or situational. But is material advantage a sufficient category for understanding what is beneficial to a person and the society in which he or she lives? Surely not. The purpose of a classical education is not to acquire wealth and privilege, but to become wise and virtuous. Neither is a true classical education a mere inculcation of the mind with ancient and arcane thought. Rightly did Aristotle say, “We take up our inquiry not so that we will understand what virtue is, but so that we may become good.” But why? Aristotle argues for the intrinsic connection of virtue with happiness, which is “the best, noblest, and most complete thing.” When we are good, we are happy, and we live fulfilling lives, which is the very definition of benefit. A classical liberal arts education stands against the utilitarian spirit of the age that relegates benefit to the marketplace, insisting rather that what benefits souls and societies is to become happy and good. A true classical education takes the goal of human happiness seriously, connecting it with the acquisition of normative moral, intellectual, and spiritual principles that have undergirded civilizations for centuries. This means that all persons in all circumstances will benefit from a classical liberal arts education, because its practice and purpose is to serve the common human good.

    But does this more wholistic understanding of the benefits of education dismiss the relevance or possibility of material advantage? Certainly not. The benefits of a classical liberal arts education need not be limited to the moral and psychological realm, but can and ought to also include the probability of professional excellence and financial security, both of which contribute to a meaningful life. People need to make a living, and an education ought to equip them to do so. To that end, a true classical liberal arts education equips students to enter the marketplace in any field with three foundational professional faculties: the imaginative capacity to generate and evaluate ideas, the ingrained ability to communicate those ideas with confidence and eloquence, and the virtuous habits of mind to acquire the skills to put those ideas into practice. After all, classically educated professionals have been trained under the teachings of the most successful and enduring thinkers and practitioners in the history of the world. Moreover, a classical liberal arts education provides the normative formation to excel in any field with virtuous principles, making classically educated professionals highly likely to cultivate a life grounded in personal happiness and public good.

    In addition, classical education is very old, which means it has proven itself over time. Much is made in our modern times of the so-called problems of representation in classical education. Why read all these dead white men? Why read old and irrelevant books? Why embrace elitist and outdated ideas and practices? But these questions demonstrate an ignorance of the immense goodness, truth, and beauty inherent in the books and ideas themselves. The great books and the liberal arts have fundamentally formed souls and societies across time toward the very happiness that is the ultimate aim and benefit of all of the strivings and struggles of human life. A classical liberal arts education immerses us in the collective search for meaning and purpose throughout the annals of human history. The writers speak for all of us and invite us into an unfolding tradition that includes us all.

 
Heidi White, M.A. 
Atrium Instructor at the Circe Institute

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