Humanities' battlefronts: a discursive "Is the enemy of my enemy my friend?"
ENThis chapter explores how the status of the Humanities in a former Republic of the Soviet Union has prompted faculty collaboration and struggle across the disciplines. In the context of similar struggles occurring across the European Union, several instances of intra-academic confict between STEM and Humanities researchers in Lithuania, as well as between researchers and administrators there, are discussed. Many national governments are, quite rightly, focused on promoting modernization and economic development. But because resources are fnite, in the higher education sector a focus on development will by necessity shrink funding for research not clearly aligned with the State’s economic goals. The authors recommend deliberative dialogue aimed at improving the process of scholarship. Rather than producing studies in automatic reaction to politically steered public pressure, collaboratively questioning the process of research can contribute to better scholarship by all academics. Keywords: humanities, STEM, Lithuania, academic administration, modernization, development, European Union. [From the publication]
- Ancient narrative and modern promise: the political arguments for the value of the humanities in Lithuania / Kęstas Kirtiklis and Aldis Gedutis. Journal of Baltic studies. 2020, vol. 51, no. 2, p. 275-287.
- Lietuvos humanitarinių mokslų Raudonoji knyga / Mantas Adomėnas, Vytautas Ališauskas, Rimvydas Petrauskas, Nerija Putinaitė, Mantas Tamošaitis. Vilnius : M. Tamošaitis, 2019. 95 p.
- Tarp vertės ir poveikio: apie tikrą ir tariamą humanitarinių mokslų krizę ir jos įveikos būdus / Kęstas Kirtiklis, Aldis Gedutis. Vilnius : Jonas ir Jokūbas, 2020. 375 p.
