Professors spotlight Fundamentals

Some may wonder about the value of a degree in Fundamentals: Issues and Texts. This Wednesday, members of the faculty will speak on behalf of the concentration in “The Power of Books: Some Personal Accounts,” at 4 p.m. in Stuart 102.

Speakers will tackle texts that have special significance for them. “Each speaker offers personal reflections on a book or books that have influenced him or her. The point of the talks is to provide a forum for thoughtful discussion of the place of important books in the life of the mind,” said Aimee Burant, coordinator of the Fundamentals program.

Professor Nathan Tarcov of the Committee on Social Thought, and the political science department, and the College; Associate Professor Christina von Nolcken of English Language and Literature and the Committee on Medieval Studies; and Associate Professor David Wray of Classical Languages and Literatures will present. A discussion will follow the presentations.

Tarcov will speak about Machiavelli’s The Prince; Wray will discuss the Bhagavad-Gita, specifically an episode from the ancient Sanskrit epic poem the Mahabharata; and Von Nolcken will discuss Beowulf.

“Either students have already experienced the power of a book, in which case they would naturally want to attend this event, or they have never experienced the power of a book, in which case they desperately need to attend this event,” Tarcov said.