Yeshiva University - Masmid Yearbook (New York, NY)

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liberal education, viewed in itself, is simply the culturation of intellect as such, and its object is nothing more or less than intellectual excellence. — John henry newman college is supposedly an educational experi- ence, ideally, a liberal arts education should provide an individual with the knowledge and skills necessary to become a useful member of society, the educational process at yeshiva college left much to be desired in terms of reaching this ideal, most courses involved nothing more than an endless flow of facts from the instructor to the students, all that was needed to excel was the ability to memorize; critical analysis and original thought were often unsolicited, intellectuaiism was a phenomenon that was virtually non-existent, few students engaged in outside reading or in observing and learning from the world around them, for the most part, knowledge was confined to formal lectures and the assignments found in a printed syllabus. what we call education and culture is for the most part nothing but the substitution of reading for experience, of literature for life...... of absolute fiction for contemporary experience. — george bernard shaw

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never pursue literature as a trade. — Samuel taylor coleridge though the faculty rarely demanded anything more than regurgitation of facts, it was mainly student attitudes which produced the anti-intellectual atmosphere at Yeshiva College. Most students simply weren ' t interested in a liberal arts education; they had come to college to acquire pre-professional training, if one ' s objective was to get into a good graduate or professional school, then the ultimate goal of the college mission became piling up as many aces as possible, students simply assumed that it was impossible to get both good grades and a good education, in dealing with this supposed conflict between a liberal arts education and pre-professional training, a majority of individuals inevitably decided to devote their entire being to getting into graduate or professional school, in the process, they sacrificed not only the essence of the college experience but also an integral part of their personal developement. that shadow my likeness that goes to and fro seeking a livelihood, chattering, chaffering; how often i find myself standing and looking at where it flits.

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to be a moral man is to obey the traditional maxims of your community without hesitation or discussion. — Charles s. pierce the clash of differing religious beliefs often marked the yeshiva scene, an ongoing battle existed between the frummie and the secularists , the frummies were the guardians of the values of a traditional yeshiva. they made certain that unyeshivish activities, such as beer blasts, never got off the ground, the secularists, on the other hand, maintained a more liberal religious outlook and thus promoted such social activities as blind-date parties, the two groups tended to tolerate each other and their differences did prompt many reli- gious discussions, a novelty for most members of both sides, consequently, campus life at yeshiva was unequally structured, any activity sponsored by a college organization or club was always constrained by consideration: this was not just any college but yeshiva college. it is peevish infirmity for a man to think himself so funny grounded that the contrary may not be believed. — michel de montaigne