A Vital Relationship Between Higher Education and Democracy and Its Term Paper

A Vital Relationship Between Higher Education and Democracy and Its Paradoxes - Term Paper Example After making an in-depth analysis of their elements, the result is presented in the last section of the paper as the conclusion. The conclusion that there exists a direct relationship between higher education and democracy and an inverse relation between education and the paradox of democracy is realized with the help of an equation. Structured and institutionalized education is one of the greatest differences between man and animal. We can define education as a collection of mature and developed thoughts of civilization. According to Mill ‘On Liberty’ (1999) â€Å"education is essentially the skillful manipulation of sequences of thoughts or impressions.† (p. 14). This is one of the factors that transform human beings into men who are superior to all other existing creatures of the world. Education performs multiple functions in man’s life, for example, it inculcates in us what to think, how to think, and why to think at all. It not only teaches us; but also introduces us to the various purposes of our individual lives. It enriches man with the asset of thoughtfulness. It is education that opens up a variety of prospects by which we analyze the facts of our life. Henry David Thoreau stated in his book ‘Life without principle’ (1936) â€Å"If a man walks in the woods for love of them, half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer; but if he spends his whole day as a speculator, and shearing off those woods and making earth bald before her time, he is an esteemed industrious and enterprising citizen.† (p. 3). By reading these lines different people can make varying conclusions. For example, for some people a man who wanders in the woods for its love can be a poet and a romantic/sensitive person; whilst for some, he can be a loafer.