In his essay “Dehumanized: When Math and Science Rule the School” published in Harper’s Magazine, Mark Slouka argues that mathematics and science are overshadowing important humanity studies throughout schools all over the United States. Slouka’s use of emotional and ethical appeals through personal experiences and extensive observation offer insight into what he believes is a problem in our modern society: Math and Science studies receiving more focus and importance than the humanities. Slouka’s target audience seems to be the young adults in the United States because they are the group being affected by this shift in studies in colleges and universities, although our elders should be equally concerned with the rising problem at hand.
In addition, Slouka argues that math and science “don’t do democracy well.” Slouka states “Not only are the sciences, with a few notable exceptions, politically neutral; their specialized languages tend to separate them from the wider population, making idealogical contagion difficult.” He is stating that although math and science are important, the communication skills learned from humanities are crucial in the explanation and acceptance of such topics. I believe Slouka is alluding to the idea that although science is always changing with new discoveries and observations, math and science together tend to be more black and white, and the grey areas are the humanities. In order for one to be represented efficiently in a democracy, they must be able to voice their opinion, aided by such subjects as english and history. Along with self expression, humanities are essential to society in teaching history as to not be repeated, showing cultural change and development over the years, and helping us to understand more about society as a whole. Slouka is very passionate throughout his argument about the equal importance of these different fields of study, and maintains that a well rounded society needs to focus not only on math and science, but also on the humanities. Slouka’s use of social, political, emotional, and cultural appeals are effective in his argument that math and science should not overcome the importance of the