This summer I had the amazing fortune to travel around the British Isles. As I spent time in the cities as well as the pastoral landscapes, I absolutely loved the rich history and deep culture. One of my favorite stops was Edinburgh, Scotland; what a beautiful city. It seemed that with every step I was taking a historic journey and no matter where I stood, I could always look up and see Edinburgh Castle standing like a sentinel above the city.
It did not take long exploring the streets to realize the importance Edinburgh had in literature. There is clearly something about those cobblestone steps that inspired so many to greatness. A list of some of the most prominent includes Robert Louis Stevenson, Walter Scott, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Burns, Adam Smith, David Hume, Alistair MacLean and James Hogg.
While all these writers deserve their rightful due and have given the world so much, I want to highlight three. The oldest is Adam Smith (1723-1790), an economist and philosopher who is considered the father of capitalism. His book “The Wealth of Nations” teaches that free markets, driven by self-interest and competition, naturally regulate themselves to create wealth and improve society’s overall well-being through the “invisible hand” of supply and demand.
Next is Robert Burns (1759-1796), who is considered Scotland’s national poet. While many of his poems are written in English, he also composed many in the Scottish language. He is considered a pioneer of the Romantic movement by emphasizing the importance of emotion, individualism, and a deep connection to nature and rural life. His poetry celebrated the beauty of the natural world, the dignity of common people, and the value of personal expression, which resonated with the Romantic movement’s ideals. While his poems are not too familiar in America today, his Scottish language poem is still sung every year on New Year’s Eve when we sing “Auld Lang Syne.”
Finally, there is Sir Walter Scott (17711832). A historian, poet and novelist, his books like “Rob Roy” and “Ivanhoe” reminded the Scots of their traditions and made historical novels popular. In many ways he is responsible for the return of traditional Scottish culture and deserves the large monument dedicated to him in Edinburgh.
If we jump forward a couple of hundred years, and if we can ever rid ourselves of the scourge of cancel culture and political correctness, there is another author who deserves a monument in this great city. While J.K. Rowling is British, she haunted many sites in Edinburgh while writing her Harry Potter series, including The Elephant House Café, Spoon Café and The Balmoral Hotel.
While not currently popular, Rowling is arguably one of the greatest authors of the past 30 years and definitely the most influential British author. Some will call me mad, but in my lifetime, I have never seen as many people excited about a book series as I saw with Harry Potter. It literally taught a generation to read and made them excited for the next book to come out.
Rowling is currently being attacked as antitrans and as a radical feminist. While the term radical feminist used to be celebrated by the left it is now currently being used to describe women like Rowling who believe in protecting women at all costs, even from men who identify as women. Hopefully, and I believe it will happen, 100 years from now Rowling will be placed on the reading lists next to Shakespeare and Dickens in British literature classes. Remember they were not classics in their time either but proved their worth. I believe the Harry Potter series will do the same.
In my travels across the pond, I had time to reflect on the joy great works of literature have given us. They have brought us insight and understanding and have changed the world in so many positive ways. Recently I have noticed a trend from men, like conservative political activist Charlie Kirk, who not only attack college, but more specifically attack majoring in the humanities. While I agree with Kirk on most issues and do understand where he is coming from, we do differ here. As a college professor, I obviously see the benefits of college, but not just for the sake of getting a job. I, too, worry about what jobs my own kids, who are majoring in film and art, will get. But it’s hard to say anything when their parents majored in history and English. If getting a job was the sole benefit of college then I would agree more. Yes, a job needs to be a major factor, but what about bettering ourselves and the world around us?
There is a quote from the movie “Dead Poets Society” that I love. It comes from Robin Williams’ character and says, “We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman, “O me! O life!… of the questions of these recurring, of the endless trains of the faithless… of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life?” Answer? That you are here — that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?”
We need science, technology, engineering and mathematics majors to sustain life and I am grateful for them. But we also need humanities majors to give us something to live for. Do we want to live in a world with all engineers and no poets? We need writers to be the next Scott, the next Burns, the next Rowling. We need economists (yes, economics is a social science, not STEM), to be the next Smith. I love these Scottish writers, but I don’t want to stop with them. As Whitman said, “That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?” James Finck is a professor of American history at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. He can be reached at HistoricallySpeakingl 776@gmail. com.
