How Lauren Berlant's Cultural Criticism Predicted the Trumping of Politics
The followin was first published in The New Yorker online on March 18, 2019.
In October, 2011, the literary scholar and cultural theorist Lauren Berlant published “Cruel Optimism,” a meditation on our attachment to dreams that we know are destined to be dashed. Berlant had taught in the English Department at the University of Chicago since 1984. She had established herself as a skilled interpreter of film and literature, starting out with a series of influential, interlinked books that she called her “national sentimentality trilogy.” A sense of national identity, these books argued, wasn’t so much a set of conscious decisions that we make as it was a set of compulsions—attachments and identifications—that we feel.
Author and Photographer Teju Cole to Deliver a Series of Talks at UChicago
Teju Cole feels a sense of responsibility in coming to the University of Chicago this spring for the 2019 Berlin Family Lectures. Not only does the acclaimed author, photographer, and critic appreciate the opportunity to speak, he relishes the sustained, serious engagement he’ll receive from the audience and UChicago community. Beginning on April 8 and continuing on April 15 and 22, Cole will explore what it means to be a sensing being through experience, epiphany and ethics. Registration for the series, which will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the Logan Center Performance Hall, is free and open to the public.
How Jewish Refuges Found a Wartime Home in Shanghai
Asst. Prof. Rachel DeWoskin has visited Shanghai every summer for nearly a decade, walking along streets that more than 18,000 Jewish refugees once called home. Her years of research culminated in the January publication of Someday We Will Fly, her fictionalized account of a young Jewish girl fleeing war-torn Poland. In writing her novel, DeWoskin also relied in part on the family possessions of UChicago staff psychiatrist Jacqueline Pardo, whose German mother Karin Pardo (née Zacharias) lived in Shanghai as a child. A selection of those objects and photographs are displayed on the third floor of Regenstein Library.
Meet the Staff: Benjamin Shurtleff
Benjamin talks about his work and new writing projects in this month's edition of Meet the Staff.
Media Mentions: February 2019
The latest media mentions, quotes, profiles, and writings from Division of the Humanities faculty, students, staff, and alumni.
Register Today for the 2019 Berlin Family Lectures: Award-Winning Author Teju Cole
During the course of three lectures focused on "Coming to Our Senses" in UChicago's Logan Performance Hall, acclaimed author, critic, and photographer Teju Cole explores what it means to be a sensing being. Through personal accounts and literary examples, Cole will examine how the physical senses—and not only the traditional five of sight, smell, sound, taste, and touch—inform our experiences, open us up to epiphany, and shape our ethics. Register for the three lectures April 8, 15, and 22 today.
Gates Cambridge Scholar to Study Science Behind Art Conservation
Ellen Purdy has always been passionate about art, inspired by childhood trips to the museum, but the fourth-year student wasn’t sure how to incorporate that lifelong interest into her chemistry coursework. It wasn’t until she studied abroad in Spain—and learned about the science behind art conservation—that her unique academic path began to take shape.
Eric P. Hamp, Renowned Scholar of Indo-European Linguistics, 1920-2019
During his 41-year career at the University of Chicago, Professor Emeritus Eric P. Hamp became one of the world’s foremost scholars of Indo-European linguistics. Not only did he base much of his scholarship on lesser-known languages and dialects, but his colleagues said he rescued many of the obscure ones. Hamp, who passed away on Feb. 17 at age 98, compared modern languages to reconstruct how our common ancestors spoke thousands of years ago—long before language was recorded.
Frank E. Reynolds, Leading Scholar of Buddhism and Revered Teacher, 1930-2019
Prof. Emeritus Frank E. Reynolds, who died on Jan. 9 at age 88, was a leading expert in Theravada Buddhism, a religion predominantly practiced in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. He is remembered not only for his lasting impact on the field, but for his work as a teacher and mentor during his 34 years on the UChicago faculty.
Miguel Civil, World’s Leading Scholar of Ancient Sumerian, 1926-2019
Miguel Civil, the world’s leading expert in the earliest known written language, died on Jan. 13 at age 92. The scholar at the University of Chicago’s Oriental Institute was described as understanding Sumerian better than anyone since the beginning of the second millennium B.C.