WE-ASC

Born 19th May, 1977, Emmanuel Ani has just received his PhD in Philosophy in April, 2010, from Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria. It is in this same university that he undertook his M. A. Philosophy after obtaining a B. Phil. at Urban Pontificate University, Rome. Awarded best graduating student at graduate and post-graduate levels, he is a member of the Nigerian Philosophical Association. A lecturer at Pope John Paul Major Seminary, Awka, Nigeria, he has also founded entrepreneurship ventures such as Fact Magazine and is co-founder of Telleard Career Councillors. He has about twenty-seven publications to his credit already, and has presented papers at twenty-two academic conferences. His areas of research include metaphysics, philosophical issues in post-modernism and cyber culture, metaphysical foundations of fundamental human rights, comparison as mechanism of modern and post-modern history, philosophy of technology, ethics and the internet, genealogical implications of genetic engineering, philosophy of time and consciousness, the crisis of capitalism, corruption and culture, and philosophical issues in education and language.

OFFICE OF THE RECTOR,
POPE JOHN PAUL II MAJOR SEMINARY,
PMB 1668, AWKA
NIGERIA

CAN WE DISPENSE WITH THE ARTS?

Abstract From the inception of the European renaissance and the age of Enlightenment which gave science the ground to blossom and test its methods of inquiry, and science subsequently achieved such monumental success as to transform the society into a place of so much comfort, luxury, facility and efficiency, the significance of the arts has contended with the prospect of being relegated. The lack of glaring physical products from theorization reminiscent of science has earned art a skeptical and disdainful attitude from people. A philosophical analysis of this issue, however, reveals that this presumptive disdain to art is gravely mistaken on a false assumption. Hermeneutical investigation of existential dimensions of human existence, for instance, reveals that scientific hypothesizing, which precedes scientific experimentation and invention, must begin with the process of imagination in terms of the picturing of hypothetical reality, which belongs, not to science, but to art, making art a precedent as well as a condition to scientific knowledge. Without art, first knowledge in the infant is impossible, because he must learn basically through illustrations. Verbal art is the written word (literature of any kind), which must be used by everyone, scientists included, in communicating. What happens to the world if writing and reading vanishes, and if the spoken word (which is also art) vanishes with it; in other words, if people stop talking and writing entirely? Movies and drama (which are arts) can be used to drive into us lessons in society and morality in such a vivid way that moral instructions are often unable to. An educational background of arts combined with a little of some other field like business management  study makes arts graduates to perform better than their business or science counterparts in banking, insurance, commerce and whichever field they go into, having given them an uncommon flexibility entirely conducive to performance, as revealed by statistics. The foundation of nationalism and therefore of any nation is basically artistic, namely, the national flag, anthem, coat of arms, pledge, national ceremonies, celebration of past heroes, artistic awards for meritorious service, and so on (which are both physical works of art and symbolically conjure images of oneness). Art, in form of tourism, is a good national income earner. Some artists like certain American musicians, actors, producers, drama and movie directors, and talk show hosts, are among the richest people in the world. Their imaginative work keeps society happy, interesting and enlightened. Without art, man will definitely die of boredom, the entire technology and wealth in the universe notwithstanding. Art is, therefore, integral to man, and thus is indispensable to society and social integration.