In order that English teachers may be important to themselves, important as teachers, and, through their behaviors, important to their community and to society, they must accept the challenge of being humanists. Ten characteristics describe humanists: (1) they revere life in all forms; (2) they have profound respect for the human mind and its freedom; (3) they have faith in human beings and their ability to create ideals by which to live; (4) they hold the search for truth to be a person's primary endeavor and defend the freedom of this search; (5) they stand in awe of creation and regard their place in the universe with humility; (6) they seek to create rather than to destroy; (7) they preserve an open and critical mind; (8) they respect independence of thought and action; (9) they are the inheritors, custodians, and teachers of the best in all the arts; and (10) they respect research in all fields, helping to integrate knowledge in the social and physical sciences with that in the humanities. (JM)