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#47 Arts Degrees


When white people go away to college, they tend to study what are knowns as the Arts.  This includes actual Art, English, History, Classics, and Philosophy.  These can of course be broken down further into Film, Womyn’s Studies (yes the spelling is correct), Communications, Gender Studies, and so forth.  It is important to note that a high percentage of white people also get degrees in Political Science, which is pretty much like arts, and only seems to have the word “science” in it to make white people feel better about themselves.

These degrees enable white people to spend four yeas of their lives reading books, writing papers and feeling great about themselves.  It is a known fact that Arts students firmly believe that they are doing you/society a favor by not getting a job and reading Proust.  They use this to protest for reduced tuition, more money for the arts, and special reduced student rates on things like bus passes.

But what about the white people who study Science, Engineering or Business?  Unless they become doctors, they essentially lose white person status (and can only be regained by working at a non-profit).

So why would white people spend all that time studying and working to get into college if they are just going to read books that they might have read in their free time?  Because white people have it made.  They can take that degree and easily parlay it into a non profit job, an art gallery job, or work in publishing. If the pay is low, no problem, their parents will happily help out with rent until they magically start making six figures or non-magically turn 40.

White people can also take that degree and go to graduate school (future post) and eventually become a professor or adjunct professor where they will still require parental support.

If they are REALLY ambitious and need to make money, they can take that degree and go to Law School.

But the real reason white people need these degrees is so that they can sound smart at parties.  Of course it trickles down to making connections, getting hired, knowing rich people, and so forth.  But ultimately it all begins by saying “reading Henry James was the most rewarding part of undergrad.”

Using this to your advantage can be very difficult as attempts to talk about the books they skimmed while hungover can expose you.  It is best to say that you were a first generation college student and your parents demanded that you study math, chemistry, economics or computer science.  You had to read Joyce on your own.


312 Responses to “#47 Arts Degrees”

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This article is great. Lots of biting sarcasm that nonetheless hold some truths behind it.

I’m not white nor did I attend school for white degrees (mine were in Finance and Management) but I certainly saw a lot of what this article describes.

The reasons students pick Liberal Arts degrees are as follows:

a) bar none they’re the easiest degrees out there. I had to take about 12 LA courses during my degree and they were by far the easiest classes to finish. Compare that with my Finance classes and we’ll see which ones tougher. Bullshi++ing through ten page papers was much easier to do than to take my hard core Finance exams. I mean come on, if most university jocks pick LA degrees that has to tell you something about how difficult they truly are.

b) it’s true, most students who pick them know they’ll always have a backup in life. Whether it’s through their parents or through their future spouse, “Anthropology” can be easily be picked because said student will always have someone else to support them. It’s why like 90% of LA students (at least in my school) were girls because they know their future husbands will be the ones with the steady career, while they’ll easily be housewives/moms.

c) there’s always the backup of a Masters too. Who cares what Bachelors you take when “apparently” Masters are where it’s important. Once these LA grads realize their degree only gets them jobs as a bank teller or secretary, they decide it’s because they need a Masters in their useless degree. And the cycle continues from there.


 

As an actual art student, I find this one particularly funny in the context of prior-degree holding adults who feel the need to get a generic art degree. Successful 40+ men and women who have a degree in business or law or something who decide to stroke their ego by going after a BA in a conceptual art school.


 

This website is HILARIOUS! I am realizing I am a way too uptight white person! Funny thing is I appropriately “lived in New York for five years”. I was making a six figure salary, but I lost my job, living back home with my parents in Scranton, and I’m piss poor, so I can’t afford my white stuff anymore!


 

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