*The last intellectuals?* May 13, at 14-17 in Metsätalo (Unioninkatu 40), Sali 10 (B311)
Seminar organized by the Centre for Nordic Studies (CENS) and the Nordic Centre of Excellence: The Nordic Welfare State -- Historical Foundations and Future Challenges (NordWel), University of Helsinki
The decades after the Second World War signified a period of change for the academic disciplines and discourses, as well as a transformation of the public role of the academics in the human and social sciences.
For example, following the expansion of both government and the academia, there were less room for public intellectuals and more demand of expert professionals working on specifically defined problems. In addition, the academia was undoubtedly also affected by processes such as the national consolidation after the war and the cultural Americanization of Europe.
In this seminar we want to discuss these transformations, and particularly the responses to the challenges by those "last intellectuals" who were active throughout this period of change. We will have four papers forming the background for a stimulating discussion.
The seminar is free and open for all interested. No registration required. For any questions, please contact johan.strang at helsinki.fi
*Programme*
Petri Koikkalainen (Lapland), Admir Skodo: (Berkeley) and Johan Strang (Helsinki): "The last intellectuals?"
Carl-Göran Heidegren (Lund): "Intoxicated philosophers, sober philosophers, and a few more"
Johanna Rainio-Niemi (Helsinki): "The last or the first of the new public policy intellectuals? The case of Heikki Waris (1901-1989)"
Liisi Keedus (Tartu): "Theoria, Praxis, and Their Modern Inversion: Critical Perspectives by Leo Strauss, Hannah Arendt and Eric Voegelin"
Welcome!