Debates concerning the place of liberal arts and the humanities at CUNY sometimes play out in the “letters to the editor” section of the New York Times. They would have been part of the public discourse, not just confined to academic spaces. This particular piece from CCNY Professor Arnold J. Bornfriend is a rebuttal against an article that argued that the liberal arts were aimed at “elegant leisure.”

“The liberal arts have always represented an approach to knowledge—a basic curiosity, a search for the truth, that both student and teacher need to share.” Read more.

The piece that this responds to can be read here.