Are you a humanities major in desperate need of a study spot other than the depressing third floor of the Rock? Are you tired of being afraid to sneeze in the quiet room of the John Hay? Do you want to feel better about doing your wildly esoteric philosophy readings by watching engineering students suffer in the BDW? Then you need a change of scenery…and I know just the place: Barus and Holley.
But don’t just take my word for it. I was lucky enough to interview two humanities students found within the engineering fortress, who both expressed their great love for the building.
Hugh Manity ‘24, an English concentrator, recently started studying at Barus and Holley and can’t imagine himself working anywhere else again.
“Personally I love Barus and Holley, or as the engineers like to call it, the asylum of torment,” Hugh enthusiastically noted. “Part of its charm is the ambiance: devastating cries of people getting weeded out of linear algebra or running from office hours in utter terror. I mean, what English major finds English too hard to handle? Not to flex, but I’ve been speaking it since I was 14 months old.”
Barus and Holley truly thrives as a space, not only in its bustling interior, but also in its physical glamor. According to Hugh, “she’s stunning in the front, and a little questionable in the back. It’s like someone found a Rhode Island middle school building, added a few too many glass windows, and said, ‘good enough.’”
Humanities concentrators love this funky hodgepodge of a building regardless. Including study rooms with either no windows, or too many windows–and nothing in between–Barus and Holley has plenty of variety. However, be warned: a grumpy Principles of Economics TA may end up violently kicking you out to prep for a last-minute section.
Phil O’Soffy ‘26, a dual concentrator in Peace and Happiness, feels a particularly strong affinity to Barus and Holley.
“Watching engineers is endlessly entertaining,” Phil shamelessly admitted. “They always walk around with their STEM-y aura of ‘Oh, look at me, I’m an engineer. I can solve complex problems and design amazing machines.’ But can they analyze the complexities of human behavior, critique the nuances of art and literature, or make eye contact? Seeing them engage in actual conversation makes me think they should probably just stick to calculators and office hours.”
It’s okay if you thought the “C” in ERC stood for “Cafe.” We’ve all been there. You can even try purchasing a watered-down chai latte for the excellent price of $5. As per Phil’s experience, you will also “enjoy a scenic view of frantic ENGN 0032 kids running out of the BDW with their freshly-made orientation toolboxes, or ENGN 0040 students crying over thermodynamics.”
“Come here to have your aesthetic novelist moment and relish in the fact that you don’t ever have to take a math class again,” Phil suggested, before promptly departing for his meditation conference section.
Don’t feel intimidated by STEM people. Originally home to Loving Him Was Brown (Brown’s Taylor Swift club), Barus and Holley is a safe space for non-STEM concentrators. After all, the majority of Swifties are not wasting their time studying APMA-Econ.
So humanities concentrators…next time you shed a tear while watching the sunset from the prison-like windows of the Rock, consider making a change in your life. Go to Barus and Holley. You deserve it.
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