In the Classroom: The Value of Liberal Arts Learning
Fernando Favela shares his personal reactions to Professor Jay Harris’ Introduction to Western Thought I
Fernando Favela (right), with Jay Harris
In 1998 I arrived in New York City full of big plans. I had just completed a screenplay titled A Brown Story. It is about Diego, a young man from East Los Angeles, who travels to San Miguel de Allende in Mexico desperately searching for a purpose. In this small colorful town Diego meets a woman who makes him an offer: a Brown University education. Diego’s experience parallels my own journey from New York City to Cambridge and Harvard, and specifically to the Extension School course HUMA E-50a Introduction to Western Thought I, taught by Professor Jay Harris. This course allowed me to understand myself within my country’s sociopolitical system via Plato’s Republic and Aristotle’s Politics.
Throughout my five years in New York City, I regularly frequented my favorite Soho diner, Havana Cafe. I ordered spicy huevos rancheros while surrounded by beautiful models, photographers, filmmakers, and writers. These were the creative people with whom I yearned to work, but my fear of rejection, of being found a dark and empty shell, held me back and kept me from personal interaction with them. I was eager to share my knowledge and appreciation for the arts, and to demonstrate that I too understood the interconnectedness of humans and nature. But with no proper schooling or professional training, I felt like an impostor trying to be someone I was not.
In this country, the majority of American children born to undocumented workers are raised in migrant communities and inner-city barrios, and are perceived by the public education system as individuals who do not aspire to anything beyond a high school education. I reject this perception. On the contrary, I agree with Plato’s view of education; he finds it critical to observe the next generation and discover their “class soul.” Plato’s approach does not discriminate by class but, rather, relies on the basis of the individual’s potential to evolve.
My elementary and secondary education provides a perfect example of the flawed American public education system. I was born in East Los Angeles and raised in Lamont, California, a migrant community. Throughout my schooling I was never nourished, encouraged, or expected to seek an education beyond 12th grade. I am now positive that the lack of interest from my “educators” had to do with the fact my parents were migrant workers. In my high school, Mexican Americans were automatically placed in general education courses, whereas the majority of Anglo-Americans were enrolled in college preparatory classes. In retrospect, my school had a two-class system. In my schooling I was given one choice and no chances to succeed at a higher level.
Contrary to Plato, Aristotle did not think much of children born to noncitizen laborers. I suppose he found someone like me not worthy of the privileges bestowed upon children born to US citizens. Many of Aristotle’s political views are in play in our contemporary society, making it extremely difficult for someone with my background to move up the social ladder. Although Plato makes room for my class to mobilize socially, somehow I cannot agree with his view of imposing class segregation on noncitizens, with no regard to their “class soul.” To embrace that idea would be to renounce my origins.
Unlike Diego from my screenplay, I took matters into my own hands. Armed with vision, courage, and conviction, I went after my right to an education as I stripped myself of the old Fernando, a man full of uncertainty and suffering from an inferiority complex. I was ready to emerge in an inclusive academic setting of passionate souls with intense concern for their world and its inhabitants. It was in Professor Jay Harris’ course, that I began on an intellectual path of self discovery and existence.
Previous | Contents | Next