Dr , Clifton W. Potter ~ LC History Professor
You don’t have to spend much time on social media today to see that some people figure the end of civilization is nigh. Don’t despair, Hornets. If everything ends, you’ve got your liberal arts education to back you up in the Mad Max-style world of the post-apocalypse. Let’s put it in terms you’ll find familiar.
Written Composition: Writing is a crucial way to preserve and promote knowledge. While paper and writing implements will be scarce, words will always remain powerful as you chronicle the new age.
Fine Arts: The ruined future isn’t all about writing. There’s a look to be had, and your skills in creativity will allow you to fashion a terrifying aspect in black leather boots, shoulder pads and mohawks. And if you want to be an overlord, you’ll need a frightening theme and the artistry to back that up.
Foreign Language: At some point, a stranger will wander into your battle for survival with written or verbal information most people don’t understand. Is it a missing piece of an important book or the location to an untouched paradise? No one will know until you translate it.
History: One of the amazing things about the end times is how quickly everyone forgets the times just before the end times. Your knowledge of history will help combat the self-serving mythologies promoted by isolated cults, lost groups of children or overlords.
Lab Science: Despite the end of it all, cars always somehow work and people somehow get motivated to do things. That, my friends, is all due to science.
Literature: Other people won’t have a clue, but you will have done your readings. You’ll know right away if dystopian society is based upon a poor understanding of literary works. “Hey,” you’ll say, “Zardoz is just ‘The Wizard of Oz!’”
Mathematics: Even if the world ends, you’ll still use math. ‘Nuff said.
Oral Communication: In both civilized and post-civilized life, communication skills are important to employers. For example, every struggling outpost needs somebody to do the talking for it. Think Dr. Dealgood from “Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome.” And if you fancy yourself along a more heroic path, well those grand rallying speeches won’t deliver themselves. It will be up to you to bring the ragtag refugees together to fight.
Philosophy: Anti-heroes scraping out a life in the ruins face extraordinarily lonely lives. Why be alone with your thoughts when you can be alone with the thoughts of the great thinkers? A personal code is needed to survive, and yours will be the best developed code of all.
Religious Studies: Civilization as we know it might end, but that’s not going to stop religion. Trust me, religion will still be around.
Social Science: Just because the basic structures of life have been eradicated doesn’t mean that we won’t need new ones. And who better suited to building them than you?
Wellness: This is obvious as life-preserving exertion is a daily requirement of post-apocalyptic survival.
Senior Symposium: As a capstone, this experience is designed to bring all of your liberal arts skills together. While that can often be challenging, you’ll be glad you had this chance to practice because it will be a lot harder to do all that synthesizing as you race overpowered war wagons down the road at high velocities under the menace of heavy weapons fire.
