iEdd said:
... We need english in everyday life, yes, but we do not all need literature studies for the same reasons we don't all need calculus....
True, i suppose.
However, as an English-speaking country, i understand why English might be compulsory and Maths is not. We should remember, that these are decisions that board memebers or ministers or whoever makes these decisions are making, by taking into account figures and information about what is happening around the entire state.
I think the main reason (that no one has addressed yet, i think) is that they force us to go through this system because there should be at least some sort of uniformity throughout the state. sort of. Otherwise there'll be complaints that an entire generation doesn't know about all this 'stuff'...
I think the best thing that i have gotten out of english is the study of all the various texts throughout the years... It makes me feel like i know something about at least a few widely appreciated texts... I mean, seriously, it's not like I'd willingly pick up Thomas More's "Utopia" or Franz Kafka's "The Trial" or Shakespeare's "Othello" if i didn't HAVE to.
in retrospect, i don't think i've made a point here... But one thing for which English can take all the credit is for widening my vocabulary, and my ability to write anything.
Say you had to do a eulogy, or you had to convince a whole lot of important people to invest in your company, etc etc. How would you do it? Would you be able to?
English does help us structure our arguments, and stimluate our minds into drawing our own conclusions and opinions, and express our ideas succinctly.
But then again maybe English isn't for everyone. i dunno, i don't really have any serious objections, because i'd still have chosen it even if it wasn't compulsory.