Abstract

The decline of the Liberal Arts in the 21st century is rooted in late 20th century trends, including grade inflation, the decline of rational authority, the rise of anonymous authority, and consumerism, which abets the tendency to elevate the pursuit of students' "self-esteem" above scholarly rigor. While the Left and the Right are apt to blame their ideological opponents, both share some responsibility for this state of affairs, which can only be remedied if they own up to their own erroneous oversights, and agree to work together.