We have met the enemy, and he is us

“We have met the enemy, and he is us.” Walt Kelly

Someone recently brought to my attention an article found on Yahoo! the other day. Its headline was the “Ten Worst-Paying College Degrees,” and I thought, “Uh-oh, this could be bad.” Well, that’s an understatement. The ten worst degrees according to Payscale.com (that noted source of irrefutable truths) were, in order:

1. Social Work
2. Elementary Education
3. Theology
4. Music
5. Spanish
6. Horticulture
7. Education
8. Hospitality/ Tourism
9. Fine Arts
10. Theatre

My first thought was, “What, no philosophy or large animal husbandry?” No, actually, my first thought was “what a poor commentary on the priorities of this world we live in.” Now I know if I looked up the highest paying degrees, I would see many of the usual suspects, and I don’t pretend to begrudge these fields their worthiness, but must the caring and creative arts always land so far down the line? Is there really so little value placed by our society on the fields that most often have direct contact with our children and families? Must the most creative and empathic people in our culture be marginalized not only by their medium, but also their moola?

I want to make a stand right here in this blog and take issue with a few points in this report, the first being the idea that the economic strata assigned to those in the categories listed above are appropriate, market-driven, and reflect truth. What they really reflect are what the Hopi Indians of the southwest referred to as Koyaanisqatsi, translated roughly as “world out of balance.” They reflect a culture that seems bent on denying that it has any culture, that it places no value on those who enlighten, inspire, and advocate. To me, this data reflects a country where there is little effort to steer the best and the brightest to positions where the emphasis tends to be on interpersonal skills and empathy. Why would we assign less value to a person who educates our children than one who markets products to them? Why is a profession which profits from interpersonal conflict considered to be of more value than one which is dedicated to providing solutions to conflicts before they begin? Again, my point is not to disparage those professions, but to ask the question, “why?” World out of balance, indeed.

I work in arts education and have done so consistently for my entire adult life. Let’s see, that puts me in roughly five of the top ten categories above, and if you factor in my nearest family and closest friends, we’ve pretty much got all ten covered. Do my friends and family and I represent an unproductive subculture of our highly productive world? Far from it. Each of us brings value, joy, and hope to the lives of many, every day. Is it frustrating to do so in a context of receiving less in return? No doubt.

But this is not just a rant; there is more to this story, which leads to my second point. I am constantly asked by anxious parents to assure them that their children who have identified the arts and related nonprofit fields as their profession will either a) snap out of it soon and come to their senses, or b) discover that pot-o-gold that awaits the very fortunate few who transition from undervalued to uber-valued in these professions, despite the odds that are stacked against them. I take a different tack in answering them: I tell them that the opportunity their children have before them is to achieve a different kind of value - personal value. The unreported flip side of stories like “America’s Ten Worst-Paying Degrees” is “America’s Highest Self-Worth Professions.” When such reports are published, one after another lists many of the professions in the caring and curing arts as having some of the highest satisfaction levels measured, indicating that there really is more to work than just compensation, and could explain why many top business executives seek out volunteer opportunities or arts-related avocations in their “off-time.”

What does this tell us? It tells us that individually, we tend to choose the heart over the wallet. We derive true value and satisfaction from making a difference in the lives of others, not just from making a dollar. The real tragedy is that when the collective mind converges, somehow the wires get crossed. This doesn’t have to be the status quo; it begins with each of us. Support working artists and arts educators, public and private school teachers, and those who battle for a healthy social balance in our world. Don’t discourage young folks from pursuing important professions that happen to pay less than others. Instead, advocate for a society that bases its values more on the difference one makes. But also remember to back off on ranking the dollar as the ultimate measure of things. There really is more to life.

By the way, Koyaanisqatsi is also the title of a terrific dialogue-free movie that features the music of the composer Philip Glass, and which presents a truly moving photographic portrait of our cockeyed world. Check it out and be reminded of the eloquent voice of the arts in our upside-down world.