The Honest Case for the Humanities

Or: Why I’m Tired of My Colleagues Making Arguments That Only Work on Us

The Honest Case for the Humanities Or: Why I’m Tired of My Colleagues Making Arguments That Only Work on Us N. Ángel Pinillos Ph.D. May 28, 2026 715 80 248 Share I recently listened to Ross Douthat’s Interesting Times interview with the philosopher Jennifer Frey, and I want to start by making it clear that I admire Frey enormously. She is a serious thinker and a courageous academic entrepreneur. What she built at Tulsa before it was sadly dismantled is exactly the sort of thing more universities should be attempting. However, almost every argument she offered for the humanities is, I think, we

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