I’ve been on the road for the last several days, visiting the University of California at Berkeley’s Townsend Humanities Center to give two lectures.
http://townsendcenter.berkeley.edu/publicworld_roth.shtml
The first had to do with the long tradition of liberal arts education in the United States, and how we must defend and reinvigorate that tradition today. The second was based on my my scholarly work on photography and critical theory, with particular attention to how one might face pedagogical challenges in contexts in which affect is running very high. These were filmed, so they should be on the web soon.
I had the opportunity to visit the California College of the Arts campus in San Francisco. It’s a high energy place, and I was so pleased to feel the vibrancy of the work on architecture, design, and art that I saw displayed.
I visited with some alumni while in the Bay Area, and several Wes folks came out to UC to hear the talks. It was great to see them!
I am now in Bejing to participate in a colloquium on Tradition co-sponsored by Wesleyan and the Social Science in China Press.
Our philosophy of history journal History and Theory has spearheaded this joint program, with great leadership from Professors Steve Angle and Ethan Kleinberg. It’s my first trip to China, and though it will be very short, I’m looking forward to building ongoing relationships with our colleagues here. I’m also giving a lecture at Beijing Normal University on why liberal arts matter and will get together with alumni before heading home. I have to be ready for class on Monday!