Art critic Eric Gibson pronounces: “Objectivity is a cardinal rule in the discipline of art history. Mr. [Paul] Johnson’s book, by contrast, abounds in strong opinions.” (“Bold Strokes, Strong Opinions,” WSJ) But literary critic Tracy Kidder sneers: “As every graduate student knows, only a fool would try to think or bear witness to events objectively […]
Competing epistemological imperatives in the arts Read More »
A snippet from philosopher Simon Blackburn about a forum on the world’s great religions: “First the Buddhist talked of the ways to calm, the mastery of desire, the path of enlightenment. “The panellists all said, ‘Wow, terrific, if that works for you that’s great.’ “Then the Hindu talked of the cycles of suffering and birth
Religious plurality or not? Amusing anecdote Read More »
Four quotations from Canadian philosopher Lorraine Code’s What Can She Know? Feminist Theory and the Construction of Knowledge. 1. On how perceptual knowledge is gendered: “Proposing that the sex of the knower is significant casts doubt both on the autonomy of reason and on the (residual) exemplary status of simple observational knowledge claims. The suggestion
Code on gender feminist epistemology Read More »
Two quotations from Bert Hamminga’s “Epistemology from the African Point of View”: “In the traditional African view, knowledge is not acquired by labor but ‘given’ by the ancestors. Second, it is immediately social: not ‘I’ know, but ‘we’ know. Thirdly, knowledge is not universal but local tribal: other tribes have different knowledge.” (p. 57) And:
Hamminga on African epistemology Read More »
Many people complain about how education has become so expensive. Mostly, they are wrong. Schooling has become more expensive, but consider the cost of the following awesome education resources: * Kahn Academy for learning math: Free. * Louvre Online for experiencing and studying art history: Free. * Google Translate for learning dozens of languages: Free.
Is Education Really Too Expensive? [Good Life series] Read More »
Thus sayeth the encyclopedia: American history has been marked by persistent and determined efforts to expand the scope and inclusiveness of civil rights. The 1950s and 60s were a great upsurge of energy to achieve: * Equal rights for all races and sexes * Free speech * Integration * Due process and the ending of
The Civil Rights Movement is Dead in Universities Read More »
A broken trough along an eave at Auschwitz Block 5Lets melting snow splash to the earth.Unruly escape from an assigned path. On a hundred other buildings the troughs function well.According to plan.Collecting every drop.Guiding them along gutters.To waiting drains.And into the anonymous darkness below. Snow is water,And water is life.Cycles of separation and absorption. A
Broken Trough, Block 5 Read More »
The syllabi for Ethics and Business and Economic Ethics this semester are now online at my Courses page.
Spring 2017 course syllabi Read More »