Humanities in Revolt is a newsletter, by Jeffrey Nall, Ph.D., dedicated to bringing the humanities out of the ivory tower and into our everyday lives. Humanities in Revolt applies the humanities to our personal, professional, and public lives in search of answers about what it means to be human in the 21st century, and how best to live lives of joy, fulfillment, and ethical integrity.
Humanities in Revolt takes as its starting point the ethical primacy of humanity and the living—the ends of life—over mechanisms and objects—the means of life. Put differently, Humanities in Revolt treats being—creative, spontaneous, organic, active, independent thought and experience—as the supreme value over having—passive, routinized, mechanized, conformist, appearance-driven thought and experience. Such a principle is as old as the humanities, and yet remains as boldly defiant of dominant societal practices as ever.
The natural question that follows is, what are these humanities in revolt against? First, the humanities are inherently in revolt against the suppression and subjugation of humanity. They are also in revolt against intransigence, cowardice, insensitivity, idolatry—honoring the objects of our creation over the agents responsible for their creation—and stasis. By contrast, the humanities are in revolt for the activation and flourishing of our fullest and most virtuous human potential—our humanity. The humanities are also in revolt for creativity, humility, courage, love, and the dynamism inherent to humanity and life, itself.
About Jeffrey Nall, Ph.D.
Dr. Jeffrey Nall is an author, speaker and civically engaged scholar. Dr. Nall teaches courses in philosophy, humanities, and gender studies. He has taught for Indian River State College, Polk State College, the University of Central Florida, and Florida Atlantic University.
Dr. Nall holds a Master of Liberal Studies from Rollins College and a Ph.D. in Comparative Studies, with a concentration on Public Intellectualism and Feminism, Gender, and Sexuality, from Florida Atlantic University (FAU). He also holds a Graduate Certificate in Women’s Studies from FAU, and a BA in Humanities from Rollins College.
Nall conducts workshops and presents talks on a topics ranging from feminist theory, men and masculinity, the meaning and significance of critical thinking, great works in the humanities, the philosophy of religion, and ethical questions such as abortion, warfare, animal rights, and social justice.
He is the author of Feminism and the Mastery of Women and Childbirth: an Ecofeminist Examination of the Cultural Maiming and Reclaiming of Maternal Agency During Childbirth (Academica Press). For more about Nall’s work go to JeffreyNall.com and find him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Stay up-to-date
Subscribers will receive periodic posts pertaining to the broad domain of humanistic inquiry, from the insights of great thinkers throughout human history, the meaning and importance of critical thinking and ethics, the underappreciated poetry in everyday existence, to contemporary cultural analysis and the ongoing struggle to combat human oppression and violence. You will also have the opportunity to engage the author and our online community in dialogue about each post.
Why get a paid subscription?
Paid subscriptions directly support Dr. Jeffrey Nall’s efforts to produce and share publicly accessible independent scholarship and analysis. Supporting donations can also be made through PayPal.
