Spring Lyceum: Social Hope in the Time of Drumpf

Friday, April 21 at 5 PM, COE (College of Education Bldg) 164. The MTSU Department of Philosophy is pleased to host Ronald Aronson (Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the History of Ideas, Wayne State University) for a Spring Semester lecture and discussion.

In his MTSU lecture, he will examine the current social/political moment, viewing the election of Donald Drumpf against the background of a generation of shrinking hope—deindustrialization, rising inequality, attacks on public education, and shredding of the social safety net. For Aronson, Drumpf’s tumultuous first months as president have set the stage for a stunning insurgency of resistance. Drawing on generations of political struggle as well as philosophy, especially the work of Jean-Paul Sartre, Aronson will argue for a unique conception of social hope. Hope, for Aronson, is not a religious attitude but a secular one, and it is far more than a mood or feeling. The very basis of social will and political action, it entails acting collectively to make the world more equal, more democratic, more peaceful, and more just. Even at a time when false hopes are rife, Aronson argues social hope still persists. Always underlying our experience—even if we completely ignore it—is the fact of our social belonging, which can be reactivated into a powerful collective force, an active WE which can still create a better future for everyone.

Ronald Aronson grew up in Detroit and earned a Ph.D. in the History of Ideas at Brandeis University where he studied with William Barrett, Page Smith, and Herbert Marcuse. A long time professor at Wayne State, he has also been a guest lecturer at several South African universities.

The story of his first experience in South Africa, at the height of the struggle to end apartheid, is told in STAY OUT OF POLITICS: A PHILOSOPHER VIEWS SOUTH AFRICA. In recognition of his scholarly career and political contributions to South Africa, the University of Natal, Durban, South Africa awarded him the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws.

Aronson is an internationally recognized authority on Jean-Paul Sartre. He has focused on Sartre’s transformation to a political thinker and activist. A past Chair of the Sartre Society of North America and founding editor of the journal SARTRE STUDIES INTERNATIONAL, he is the author of JEAN-PAUL SARTRE-PHILOSOPHY IN THE WORLD (Verso), SARTRE'S SECOND CRITIQUE (University of Chicago Press), and CAMUS AND SARTRE: THE STORY OF A FRIENDSHIP AND THE QUARREL THAT ENDED IT (University of Chicago Press) which has been translated into eight languages.

In addition, he is the author of LIVING WITHOUT GOD: NEW DIRECTIONS FOR ATHEISTS, AGNOSTICS, SECULARISTS, AND THE UNDECIDED as well as AFTER MARXISM. He has published articles in such academic and popular journals as THE NATION, THE CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION, THE WASHINGTON POST, DISSENT, NEW POLITICS, SCIENCE AND SOCIETY and YALE FRENCH STUDIES.

Professor Aronson is also co-producer of the feature-length documentary film PROFESSIONAL REVOLUTIONARY about legendary Detroit social and political activist Saul Wellman and, most recently, 1ST AMENDMENT ON TRIAL: THE CASE OF THE DETROIT SIX, focused on the Federal government's trial of Michigan Communist Party leaders in the '50s.

His newest book, WE: REVIVING SOCIAL HOPE (University of Chicago Press) is scheduled for publication the week of his MTSU lecture.

An informal reception will follow the lecture at the home of Professor Michael Principe.

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