The University named Penn Professor of Philosophy Paul Guyer the first Jonathan Nelson Professor last Friday. Guyer, who is known for his work in aesthetics, was hired as the first of six professors who will be appointed under the Humanities Initiative, a project funded by a $3 million donation and outside grants that attempts to bolster the humanities at Brown.
The professorship was established last year by the Corporation, the University's highest governing body, to appoint faculty whose "excellence in scholarship and teaching places them among the world's best in their area," according to a University press release.
Different departments in the humanities were asked to submit proposals to the University with recommended candidates, who then underwent an interviewing process, said Bernard Reginster, professor of philosophy and chair of the department, which he said was responsible for appointing Guyer.
When the philosophy department approached Guyer about the position, Guyer said he responded enthusiastically, "Yes, by all means."
Guyer is the author of nine books and over 200 articles and has won a number of awards throughout his career. He is known as the world's preeminent scholar on Immanuel Kant, Reginster said, adding that Guyer is also a leading scholar on the history of aesthetics, a field he said appeals to a wide array of students. "We didn't have a specialist in this field before Guyer," Reginster said.
Susan Sauve Meyer, chair of the philosophy department at Penn, said Guyer is "a wonderful person to have around."
Meyer added that Guyer has the unique ability to "expand the conception of what the humanities is and what it can do" and called him a "great spokesperson" for the humanities.
"He has almost encyclopedic knowledge about the texts he works with," she added.
"He is going to be a real asset to the humanities at Brown," she said. "He's world-renowned in the work he does."
Guyer highlighted curricular freedom as one of the key reasons he looks forward to teaching at Brown. He added that teaching students who want to be there "for the sake of being there" and are not simply trying to meet a requirement is an enriching experience.
Reginster said about half the courses Guyer will teach are expected to be in philosophy and the other half in the general humanities. He said he anticipates that Guyer will design courses that are "appealing and accessible" to students outside the philosophy concentration.
Guyer emphasized humanities as a crucial element of education. "Of course it's important to study human beings the way we study other objects in nature - that is the means," he said. "But the end is understanding ourselves, expressing ourselves, and so, without the humanities, we just have an incomplete human existence."
Guyer's appointment will reinforce strengths and create links between various fields in the humanities, said Kevin McLaughlin P'12, dean of the faculty.
"This was a highly desirable appointment for a number of departments," he said. "We have developed a strong profile in the humanities, and Guyer really enhances it."
