Lecture series 'Blums' with enthralling presentation
Victoria Valet
Issue date: 10/13/09 Section: News
On Friday, October 9th students and professors from Loyola and other surrounding universities flocked to Sellinger Hall 004 to bear witness to the first presentation of The Loyola College Distinguished Scholar Lecture Series, given by Professor Paul Richard Blum, T.J. Higgins, S.J., Chair in Philosophy, entitled "Philosophy in Poetry: Francesco Petrarca."
Prior to the lecture Professor Robert Miola, Gerard Manley Hopkins Chair in English, gave what Professor Blum would later humorously refer to as a "eulogy," briefly summarizing Blum's years of commitment to his work and experience with the field of philosophy, stating that "[Blum] is a man who lives the life of the mind with unparalleled clarity and dedication."
After much anticipation and a rousing applause from the audience, Blum took his place at the podium, ready to share his "scat of thoughts" and discuss one of Petrarch's most famous works, Canzoniere, a collection of 366 sonnets dedicated to his love and inspiration, Laura, relating the works to his thesis, being that "… Petrarch's poems encapsulate his philosophy."
As images of medieval paintings depicting Petrarch and Laura sailed across the classroom's projector screen, Blum alternated between the recitation of English translations and playing Italian recordings of the collection's poems. Between sonnets, he provided analyses, explanations, and his own personal insights into the works and their relation to philosophy, so that anyone, whether they had a lifetime of philosophy expertise under their belt or merely a core introductory philosophy class to speak of, could understand "… Petrarch's philosophy put into verse."
Philosophy, a subject whose abstract thinking can be very difficult to grasp, was made comprehensible by Blum, as he injected spurts of humor and wit between the complex themes of the discussion, jokingly commenting on the subject matter and keeping the crowd entertained, without digressing from his point. Even freshman Brendan Finnerty, a generally mathematically minded student, thought that "Professor Blum was an engaging speaker and enlightened the audience on the works of Petrarch," additionally stating that "[after] attending his lecture, [he] became more interested in the works of Petrarch."
Prior to the lecture Professor Robert Miola, Gerard Manley Hopkins Chair in English, gave what Professor Blum would later humorously refer to as a "eulogy," briefly summarizing Blum's years of commitment to his work and experience with the field of philosophy, stating that "[Blum] is a man who lives the life of the mind with unparalleled clarity and dedication."
After much anticipation and a rousing applause from the audience, Blum took his place at the podium, ready to share his "scat of thoughts" and discuss one of Petrarch's most famous works, Canzoniere, a collection of 366 sonnets dedicated to his love and inspiration, Laura, relating the works to his thesis, being that "… Petrarch's poems encapsulate his philosophy."
As images of medieval paintings depicting Petrarch and Laura sailed across the classroom's projector screen, Blum alternated between the recitation of English translations and playing Italian recordings of the collection's poems. Between sonnets, he provided analyses, explanations, and his own personal insights into the works and their relation to philosophy, so that anyone, whether they had a lifetime of philosophy expertise under their belt or merely a core introductory philosophy class to speak of, could understand "… Petrarch's philosophy put into verse."
Philosophy, a subject whose abstract thinking can be very difficult to grasp, was made comprehensible by Blum, as he injected spurts of humor and wit between the complex themes of the discussion, jokingly commenting on the subject matter and keeping the crowd entertained, without digressing from his point. Even freshman Brendan Finnerty, a generally mathematically minded student, thought that "Professor Blum was an engaging speaker and enlightened the audience on the works of Petrarch," additionally stating that "[after] attending his lecture, [he] became more interested in the works of Petrarch."
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posted 10/28/09 @ 3:02 PM EST
Good job! It was very interesting for me! Keep it up!
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