Dr. Mary Frances Berry Lecture Announced

Dr. Mary Frances Berry, Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania will be giving a lecture in the Philomathean Society Halls at 6 O'Clock P.M. on January 29th, 2008. All are welcome to attend.

"[Dr. Berry] was appointed by President Carter and confirmed by the Senate as a Commissioner on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. After President Reagan fired her for criticizing his civil rights policies, she sued him and won reinstatement in federal district court. In 1993, President Clinton designated her Chairperson of the Civil Rights Commission. She was reappointed to a six-year term in January, 1999. She resigned from the Commission on December 7, 2004.

During Dr. Berry's tenure as Chairperson, the Commission issued a number of significant reports including 2000 Florida Presidential Elections, police practices in New York City, environmental justice, percentage plans and affirmative action, church burnings, and conditions on Indian reservations." -from her website.

This is sure to be a phenomenal event; all are encouraged to attend!

As always, refreshments will be served.

Sic Itur ad Oratio

Perfect Sound Forever: Audio of a few Lectures from Last Semester

Andrew Kincaid, head of the Philo Sound Conspiracy, has graciously provided sound from a few of last semester's lectures.

Here's John DiIulio and Stacey Sobel.

Sic Itur ad Your Ears

Upcoming Lectures

The Philomathean Society Announces Some Upcoming Lectures

January 31st- Robert Vitalis- Professor of Political Science, Author of America's Kingdom: Mythmaking on the Saudi Oil Frontier and When Capitalists Collide

February 7th- Guthrie Ramsey- Associate Professor of Music, Author of Race Music

February 13th- Lawrence Bernstein- Professor of Music, specialist in Renaissance Music

All lectures will begin at 6:00 P.M. in the Philomathean Halls (University of Pennsylvania, College Hall, 4th Floor). As always, refreshments will be provided.

Check back for more information soon.

While you're waiting for the 2008 Season of Philo lectures to kick off...

Vali Nasr, lecturer at Philo's 2007 Annual Oration, has just published an incisive article in the upcoming issue of Foreign Affairs (January/February). Nasr, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, levies an informed critique of current policy towards Iran that assumes a kind of monolithic politics in the Middle East.



Here's an excerpt:
"Washington's reliance on reviving the Middle East peace process as the linchpin of its strategy to contain Iran is also problematic. Bush administration officials are assuming that resumed diplomacy between Israel and its neighbors will assuage the Arab street, rally Arab governments behind the United States, and lay the groundwork for a united Arab-Israeli front against Iran. But this hope disregards the fact that in their current state, Palestinian and Israeli politics will not support the types of compromises necessary for a credible breakthrough. Both Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas are too weak to press their constituencies toward the painful concessions that a viable peace compact would require. The expectations of Arab leaders far exceed those of Israel and the United States: while they have been openly demanding final-status negotiations, Secretary Rice has been talking only about creating momentum toward peace."


You can read the full article here.
Sic Itur ad Oratory

Documentation: An Examination for Critics

In 1917, the late Clayton Hamilton proposed that the following test be administered to dramatic critics.

1.) Have you ever stood bareheaded in the nave of Amiens?
2.) Have you ever climbed to the Acropolis by moonlight?
3.) Have you ever walked with whispers into the hushed presence of the Frari Madonna of Bellini?

To receive your free Philomathean Society Rosetta Stone decoder ring, submit your answers by post to:

The Philomathean Society
Attn: The Committee on Mediating with Clayton Hamilton's Spirit
Box H
College Hall
The University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104

Post the First: On Blogging

As the Second Censor of the Philomathean Society, it is my distinct privilege to bring you a phirst (and perhaps last?) experiment in Phi-blogging. Briefly, this blog will act as an online repository for up-to-the-minute information about events at Philo, complete with biographical sketches of upcoming lecturers, links to recordings of lectures (courtesy of our Audio Ministry), as well as--when possible--pertinent textual reproductions of events in the Halls. In addition, it is my hope that all visitors to the Halls will use the "comments" portion of this blog to voice their opinions about our lectures, initiate debates, and in general respond to the Society's offerings throughout the semester.