Reflections on Technology and the Liberal Arts

When this class started, our first assignment was to briefly introduce ourselves, and to answer briefly the following questions:

• What do you mean by "technology"?
• How does technology affect your life?
• What do you mean by "liberal arts"?
• How does art affect your life?
• Where do technology and the arts intersect?

Now that I have neared completion of the course, I am able to expound on those answers, based on the reading and film viewing I have done for this course.

In my introduction, I said that I thought technology was the practical application of theory. I still believe that, and I think a good example can be found in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Victor had studied the works of scholars, philosophers, and scientists to learn the theory involved in creating life. He applied this theory to develop the technology that enabled him to create his monster.

Technology does indeed affect my life every day, in many ways. As I think about how it affects me daily, I need only look at my job. I receive messages from my customers via cell-phone, pager, and email. I communicate with my supervisor and home office via telephone, email, and fax. Technology has enabled our company to become a worldwide leader in our field. It provides a means for real time communications with other company employees anywhere in the world with the same convenience as if they were in the next office.

I still think the term "liberal arts" encompasses such things as literature, music, theatre, art, and dance. I would add to that list the category "films and movies". I had always viewed them simply as entertainment, but after viewing Brazil, and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, I realize that films and movies can be thought of as art, too. I might refine my definition of "liberal arts" to mean anything created by man which, when viewed by two or more people, can evoke a different reaction. For example, my thoughts on Franz Kafka's "In the Penal Colony" and the movie Brazil to those of some of my classmates.

Art continues to affect me by helping to mold my attitude. I commented in my introduction that I thought art also leads to technological advances. Eadweard Muybridge's Nude Descending Stairs is a good example of how art leads to advances in technology. Muybridge is considered the father of motion pictures because his motion studies led to the development of technology that enabled the creation of motion pictures and film.

My assignment was to write a poem about technology. All I can say is that I made an attempt to do so. The result is entitled "Oops". 

Technology and the arts intersect in more ways than I originally realized. Art influences technology, as Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea predicted the development of submarines and other now common technologies. On the other hand, technology influences art, as I discovered on my field trip to the Chrysler Museum of Art to view the exhibit Sacred Sites Then & Now, The American Civil War. Many of the photographs and paintings there used modern technology, either as a medium or as a contrast to other works of art. If you view my report on this trip, I think you will want to visit the museum, too. 

I visited Technology Traders and learned a good deal about the way technology affects this business. If you would like, you can read about the visit.

In conclusion, I think technology and liberal arts are more closely connected that I originally thought. Although they may seem to be in opposition to each other, I think there are many ways in which they are similar.

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The contents of the individual pages of faculty, staff, and students are the responsibility of the authors of those pages and do not necessarily represent the official position of the college or of any of its divisions or departments. Updated July 24, 1998