THE SCOPE OF THE

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILO):

• Understand the role of humanities and arts in man’s attempt at fully

realizing his end;

• Engage better with personal experiences of the scope of humanities;

and

• Write intensive reflection papers/objective tests.

 MEANING OF THE HUMANITIES

The term ‘Humanities’ comes from a Latin word humanus,

which means ‘human, cultured and refined’.
The study of all languages and literatures, the arts, history, and
philosophy.
Humanities, however, should
not be confused with the term
humanism, which refers to a
specific philosophical belief,
nor with humanitarianism,
which is the concern for
charitable works and social
reform.
Academically, we refer to the
humanities as the study of arts –
the visual arts such as
architecture, painting, and
sculpture; music; dance; the
theater or drama; and literature.
They are the branches of learning
concerned with human thoughts,
feelings, and relations
 • The study of arts is the study of mankind.

• Humanities, being the study of arts, has always been concerned with
the importance of human beings, his feelings, and how he
expresses those feelings.

• However, it should be stressed that the humanities emphasize

analysis and exchange of ideas rather than the creative expression
of the arts or the quantitative explanation of the sciences
SIGNIFICANCE
OF THE
HUMANITIES
 • Art is very important in our lives. It constitutes one of the oldest forms
and most important means of expression developed by man.

• It is a language, which is charged with feelings and significance that has

sprung up among men living together. 

• Art is concerned with the communication of certain ideas and feelings by

means of a sensuous medium – color, sound, bronze, marble, words and
film.

• This medium is fashioned through a symbolic language marked by beauty

of design and coherence of form.

• It appeals to our minds, arouses our emotions, kindles our imagination,

and enchants our senses. (Machlis, 1963).

• Thus, each artwork reflects the ideals, hopes and fears of the times in
which an individual lives.
The humanities are the stories, the ideas, and the words that help us
make sense of our lives and our world.

The humanities introduce us to people we have never met, places we

have never visited, and ideas that may have never crossed our
minds.

By showing how others have lived and thought about life, the
humanities help us decide what is important in our own lives and
what we can do to make them better.

By connecting us with other people, they point the way to answers

about what is right or wrong, or what is true to our heritage and our
history.

The humanities help us address the challenges we face together in

our families, our communities, and as a nation.
 Why should we study the

HUMANITIES?
 Why should we study the

HUMANITIES?
• The teaching of the humanities is intended to make the students realize that the mere possession
of knowledge is useless unless put to useful ends.

• Moreover, they would become aware that knowledge alone is meaningless unless it is
accompanied by values, sentiments, priorities, insights, inter-relationships and other
transcendent realities not subject to empirical proofs also form part of the person’s education.

• In the humanities, the students are exposed to these, thus, the development of the whole person,
which is the goal of present-day education.
SCOPE OF THE
HUMANITIES
In the academe, the humanities is
considered as part of the social sciences
and the natural sciences, one of the three
major components of the liberal arts and
sciences.

The humanities is a multifaceted subject.

While the precise definition of the
humanities can be contentious, the
following disciplines are generally
recognized to form their core:
PHILOSOPHY
 PHILOSOPHY

• The study of general and fundamental problems concerning matters such

as existence, knowledge, truth, beauty, law, justice, validity, mind, and
language.

• It is described as the love of truth, wisdom and intelligence by its critical,

generally systematic approach and its reliance on reasoned argument. 
 PHILOSOPHY

• When man asks and seeks answers to questions such as:

Who am I? Where have I come from? What is the meaning of life? What can
I do to remain an effective, responsible member of the society? , man is trying
to see himself as human.

• Thus, he is searching for truth and wisdom. This is the philosophical approach in
achieving the ultimate goal of the humanities, which is to make man more human. 
PSYCHOLOG
Y
 PSYCHOLOG
Y
• Psychology is the scientific study of the behavioral
characteristics of an individual, including the functions and
processes of mind, in relation to the social and physical
environment.

• As a science, it gathers knowledge by carefully observing and

measuring events and experimenting.

• It is also an art because it develops skills in applying scientific

knowledge to problem solving.
 PSYCHOLOG
Y
• Being the field of science that studies the mental processes of
man, psychology is always concerned with human thoughts,
feelings and emotion.

• Furthermore, it seeks to explain the factors that affect how man

expresses certain emotions and executes certain behavior.
SOCIOLOGY
SOCIOLOG
Y
• Is the study of human social
behavior, especially the study of the
origins, organization, institutions,
and development of human society.

• Its focal interest is on how humans

deal with other human beings within
his communal sphere.
The Core Foundation of the Humanities

• The human body has always been central

to sociology because sociology is about
the organization of collections of human
bodies into forms of social life.

• Sociologists have also always been

concerned with the question of the
boundary between the biological and the
social in the formation of human
identity; the so-called nature/nurture
controversy. 
The Core Foundation of the Humanities

• But until the late 1970s the body as the

physical expression or embodiment of
human identity, personal experience, and
action was largely ignored by
sociologists, who concentrated on the
structuring of groups and societies.

• It has been concerned with the analysis

of a social institution or societal segment
as a self-contained entity or in relation to
society as a whole.
HISTORY
 HISTORY
• History is the study of the past, with special attention
to the written record of the activities of human
beings over time.

• It is a field of research which uses a narrative to

examine and analyze the sequence of events, and it
often attempts to investigate objectively the patterns
of cause and effect that determine events.

• The study of history has sometimes been classified

as part of the humanities and other times as part of
the social sciences. It can also be seen as a bridge
between those two broad areas, incorporating
methodologies from both.
ARCHEOLOG
Y
 ARCHEOLOG
Y
• Archeology is the scientific study of past human
culture and behavior, from the origins of humans to
the present.

• Archeology studies past human behavior through

the examination of material remains of previous
human societies.

• These remains include the fossils (preserved bones)

of humans, food remains, the ruins of buildings,
and human artifacts—items such as tools, pottery,
and jewelry.

• From their studies, archaeologists attempt to

reconstruct past ways of life.
• Archeologists concentrate their studies on past societies and changes in those societies over
extremely long periods of time.

• The chronological data that the archaeologists gather can provide information such as how the
use of a new style of pottery or type of weapon spread from one region to another over time.

• By analyzing this information for several related archaeological sites, archaeologists assemble
long sequences of past human cultures.

• Being the study of arts, humanities consist of the visual arts, literature, drama and theater,
music and dance.
Summary:
• Being a student, you must learn and know that Humanities introduce us to
people we have never met, places we have never visited, and ideas that may
have never crossed our minds.

• By showing how others have lived and thought about life, the Humanities help
us decide what is important in our own lives and what we can do to make
them better.

• By connecting us with other people, they point the way to answers about what
is right or wrong, or what is true to our heritage and our history.

• The Humanities help us address the challenges we face together in our

families, our communities, and as a nation.
Thank you for listening! ☺