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The practice of the human sciences shows that the study of human affairs is just as rational and objective as the study of nature. But there are still many intellectuals who hold that everything that can be said about culture is determined by opinions, traditions, and power structures rather than the facts of the matter. The same people also hold this about the study of nature. They take a relativistic stance. These intellectuals form their own opinions by discussing other intellectuals' opinions and are not interested in the hard work of empirical research. Some intellectuals would also argue that rather than opting for being a Wissenschaft the real task for the humanities is to establish liberal education, a foundation of values and a cultural background which religion no longer can deliver. The humanities should liberate students who study the arts, and it should honour a moral purpose—so the argument has gone for centuries. Already Cicero saw Studia humanitatis, the reading of the classical texts, as a means to becoming a perfect human being. The attempt to give the humanities a scientific content was of secondary importance until the humanities acquired certain scientific characteristics during the Enlightenment.

DOI: 10.1057/9780230355484_8

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