Brand Guide October 2013 | Page 9

2013 BRAND GUIDELINES What We Do The arts narrate, visualize, and embody the symbolic and emotional dimensions of human aspirations and questions. Analyzing the narrative, visual, and spatial imagination, and our belief - and value systems, the humanities allow glimpses into our inner world and the cultures around us. They also examine the dialectic of power relations and the possibilities of social justice inherent in language and cultural representations. The study of foreign languages and cultures and our rich study abroad opportunities foster an awareness of global interconnections. The classroom practices associated with arts and humanities teaching foster strong critical reading and thinking skills, excellent multimodal communication and writing skills, visual and spatial literacy, and an awareness of ethical and global cultural complexities. The arts and humanities give us tools and structures to think with, to imagine and experiment. They invite us to ask “What if we looked at this differently or did things another way?” They urge us to re?ect on our beliefs, be more critical of our own motivations, and highly perceptive of our social and natural environment. They foster innovation because they enhance our ability to re?ect on emerging issues, and formulate new questions. MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY 7 College of Arts & Letters