Not every student has done honors work in the humanities, but all students experience research at a human level that necessarily recalls the work of the humanities. This article describes how Joe Kraus, a professor of literature at the University of Scranton, was inspired to see applied humanities in stories of human experiences, which helped him imagine he could make the world a better place if he went to the classroom and worked on his writing instead of pursuing a career in law, medicine, or business. He suggests that the humanities are an essential feature of honors education in whatever field students choose for their research. Honors research--in the light of framing studies with philosophy, literature, and personal experience--is an expression of the self attempting to understand itself, which, however it manifests itself, is precisely the central subject of the humanities.