The Loss of the Creature
Education according to Walker Percy
"This is a loss which has been brought about by science but through no fault of the scientist and through no fault of scientific theory. The loss has come about as a consequence of the seduction of the layman by science. The layman will be seduced as long as he regards beings as consumer items to be experienced rather than prizes to be won, and as long as he waives his sovereign rights as a person and accepts his role of consumer as the highest estate to which the layman can aspire." - Walker Percy
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Walker Percy was a 20th century writer of fiction and non-fiction, most known for his novel The Moviegoer. His essay, "The Loss of the Creature," published in 1954, best encapsulates his views on education. In this treatise, Percy paints a picture of what is lost when experiences and knowledge are prepackaged. He may not be considered one of the great thinkers, but his ideas about individual sovereignty and discovery resonate with the many who feel they've been deprived of an education. For Percy, discovery by sovereign individuals is precisely what education is about, not consuming the preformulated experiences or information presented by experts.