OCH News: January 2008

Humanity in Perspective at midterm

Students move from ancient Greece to American democracy.

After ending the first semester on a challenging note--grappling with Aristotle's difficult Nicomachean Ethics--Humanity in Perspective (HIP) students returned from winter break refreshed and ready to dive into the Declaration of Independence. With Reed College English professor Becky Gordon facilitating, fourteen students spent the first evening of class comparing the original and final drafts of the document and considering the effects of the various changes.

At one point, a student made an impassioned argument that Thomas Jefferson should have fought harder to keep language in the document that denounced slavery, saying that this omission has had lasting implications for racial strife in our country. More students chimed in, saying that the Declaration's authors were hypocrites who denounced slavery even while keeping slaves. Finally, one student, while acknowledging her fellow students criticisms, remarked that regardless of the flaws with the document and the questionable actions of the forefathers, she thought it was great that they had included forceful language about citizens' rights and obligations to change the system if it no longer works.

Jennifer Allen, HIP course director and OCH education programs director, says that throughout these sometimes-heated debates, the students both challenge and encourage each other. She also describes how readily the students move between the Greek texts they studied last semester and the American texts they're beginning to study. "Several students compared Jefferson to the Greek leader Pericles, who the historian Thucydides called 'the first citizen of Athens,'" Allen notes. "It's great to see students making connections across time and cultures, and really taking ownership of the ideas."


Popular reading and discussion series returns this spring

OCH and Portland Center Stage work together again on Four Questions program.

OCH, in cooperation with Portland Center Stage, again offers Oregonians the chance to explore timeless questions by reading and discussing key theatrical works in Four Questions: American Theater Considers Community, Knowledge, Justice, and Social Capital.

During the month of April, Four Questions participants will meet weekly with scholars for compelling and provocative conversations about questions that have inspired and confounded people through the ages. Participants will use selected readings from contemporary American theater as springboards for these conversations in order to provide a common ground for consideration.

Four Questions will take place on four consecutive Mondays, beginning April 7, 2008, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., at the Gerding Theater at the Armory in Portland. Registration materials will be available at the OCH website on February 4, 2008. The series is limited to forty participants. Registration, which includes a $35 fee for reading materials, closes on March 1, 2008.


Oregon Humanities: next theme and winners of drawing announced

Does social status matter? How do merit and privilege affect economic mobility? Is it realistic to strive for a classless society? The Summer 2008 issue of Oregon Humanities on the theme of "Class" will explore these provocative questions in an open discussion about a touchy subject. If you're interested in contributing to this discussion, please read the writers' guidelines and download the call for submissions. Feature proposals and drafts are due February 11 and Posts are due April 14.

Thanks to everyone who the took the Oregon Humanities survey. You'll begin to see some changes that reflect your feedback in the Spring 2008 issue on Strangers (available in March). Congratulations to the following readers who won the drawing for copies of The First Oregonians: M. Dalziel of Portland, M. Hope of Klamath Falls, F. Mosedale of Beaverton, J. Reynolds of Sherwood, and S. Woolley of Portland.


Message from the Executive Director

Happy new year! We at OCH are renewed and reinvigorated and looking forward to an exciting year. One of the most exciting developments we have planned for 2008 isn't something that will be immediately visible to those of you who aren't on the OCH staff or board, but it will likely have a ripple effect for years to come. In February, the board and staff will be participating in facilitated work retreats to help us shape the vision and future of the organization.

In planning for these retreats, staff members have been looking closely at how councils across the country define and make use of the humanities, and though the definitions vary, at the root of each is a set of questions--Who we are? What do we believe? Where have we been? What do we value?

In exploring our responses to these questions, we've been reminded that the humanities ignite in us a commitment to making the world a more humane place. Among other things, this includes programming that is accessible to all Oregonians, regardless of class or educational background, and that decreases our sense of civic isolation.

These crucial questions and commitments will drive the OCH staff and board forward during this planning year. But these are questions and commitments that I hope all Oregonians will keep in mind during this election season. After all, without advocating a particular position, the humanities can help all citizens develop informed perspectives and a clearer sense of what is important to our future.

Sincerely,

Cara Ungar-Gutierrez

© 2008 Oregon Council for the Humanities