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April 2011 marks the sesquicentennial of the first shots fired in the American Civil War. This war changed the way Americans approached disagreement and fostered the birth of the one major American contribution to philosophy: pragmatism. One hundred and fifty years later, how can the lessons of this national crisis inform the ways we conduct our current debates? More often than not, conversations on the radio or cable news surrounding the difficult issues faced by our communities and nation are about hardened positions and talking past one another, rather than real engagement with each other’s ideas. Linfield College associate professor David Sumner will facilitate a discussion that asks how we can look to American pragmatism to help us move past entrenched positions and engage in productive and civil discussions about important issues.
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Equipment required: digital projector, CD player, TV/DVD, chalkboard/whiteboard
Program available through October 2013
David Sumner is an associate professor of English at Linfield College where he teaches courses in American Literature, philosophy and literature, and rhetoric. He specializes in American nature writing, rhetoric, Western American literature, and the connection between literature and environmental ethics. Sumner has published in a variety of newspapers, literary journals, and books, including a series of interviews with contemporary nature writers such as Terry Tempest Williams, Barry Lopez, and David Quammen. His most recent article looks at the use of the term “ecoterrorism” in news media. When not teaching or writing, he likes to wander the wild places of the West with his family and a fly rod.
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