Opening Panel Discussion:
Must the humanities be “relevant”? To what, or to whom? How have perspectives on these questions evolved since the heated debates of the 1960s and 1970s? Can research be “irrelevant,” and if so, can it still be worth pursuing? Or, on the other hand, is all research in the humanities in some way relevant? Our six panelists will each speak for five minutes about the notion of relevance as it relates to their research and teaching, after which an hour will be devoted to general discussion.
All audience members are encouraged to propose approaches to this subject, and to reflect on their own experiences. Please feel free to bring up issues of “relevance” that you have faced in your own research and teaching.
Panelists:
Cindy I-Fen Cheng, Professor, History, UW-Madison (IRH Resident Faculty Fellow)
Ramzi Fawaz, Professor, English, UW-Madison (IRH Resident Faculty Fellow)
Stephen Kantrowitz, Professor, History, UW-Madison (IRH Senior Fellow)
Larry Shapiro, Professor, Philosophy, UW-Madison (IRH Senior Fellow)
Mali Skotheim, Research Associate, Classics, The Warburg Institute (IRH Solmsen Fellow)
Melissa Vise, Visiting Assistant Professor, Italian Studies, New York University (IRH Solmsen Fellow)
Refreshments will be available at 3:15 PM