*
Tuesday, September 13, 1988/The Battalion/Page 5
~A&M professor provides
Education, controversy
acher raises questions on issues
2 Ru, s|| gy Denise Thompson
Reporter
kl'ooJMhen lecture classes and stan-
| ^Bized tests make you question the
ortp of college, a man sitting in a
uttered corner office in Blocker
uilding could provide answers . . .
■ '^Bnaybe raise more questions.
l|7pj Hi , ability to raise and answer
uestions on an array of subjects has
elpcd make Larry Hickman, asso-
^Ljate professor of philosophy and
limanities, one of the most contro-
ersi. 1 figures at Texas A&M.
!“|got interested in philosophy be-
3r g ause I was thinking about the his-
la'STry of ideas and how we came to be
iere at all,” Hickman, 45, said. “Be-
■ l went to college, I read books
Width philosophy, but I had no idea
)r s hat anybody could do it for a living,
think I decided to study philoso-
ihBbecause I just kept reading. It’s
mazing how one’s mind will change
f he just reads books.”
(a ijJ Hickman’s life was drastically
i/^Hged by reading, he said. While
W .ttending Hardin-Simmons Univer-
sa tty to earn a bachelor’s degree in
isychology, he minored in religious
tuijies and hoped to becctme a Bap-
istnnnister.
' Today, after obtaining a doctorate
.. n philosophy from the University of
Texas, Hickman questions the
Hr^Bnds Christianity is based upon
ind readily discusses his agnostic be-
iefs. ^
“What changed my mind is that I
; ■ a lot of books,” he said, “and
he' .|Bnore I read, the more I realized
he lifestyle I was involved with was
'' oo narrow for my needs.
“I found the Bible no more proves
he insistence of God than do the
vork- of Mark Twain. I found my-
n; elf rejecting more and more what
|| Christians believe essential to
>eing a Christian — that there is one
^^»nal God. I believe that the hu-
||S problem has got to be solved by
: tumans.”
Besides being well-read in Greek,
nedieval, and modern subjects,
dickman has written and edited and
swrking on several books.
In 1981, he published a book on
igiaate medieval logic. He edited two
extl ioks for the technology and
* "Turn an values class, and currently is
forking on a visual media textbook
obe released in Fall 1989.
^~JMe did not teach in Fall 1987 be-
ause he was writing a book on the
ife of John Dewey, for which he re-
;i t eiyed a grant from the National En-
f^Bment for the Humanities,
ibe Dr. Herman J. Saatkamp, head of
he philosophy and humanities de-
)C j lartment, said he thinks the work
lickman is doing on Dewey is excel-
ent.
“I think the work he is doing will
■considered classical,” he said. “I
fcC hink when it is finished, it will come
(vt obe considered excellent material.”
Hickman will not teach classes this
15i all because he is writing a book
bout the ethics of embryo research.
“1 teach courses in ethics and the
^)h|psophy of ethics in technology,
^"ind this is just a special case,” he
1 ||f. “To what extent is it ethical to
ake embryos left over from the
n trocess of in vitro fertilization that
vould be destroyed and use them in
txpenmentation? It’s not just some-
hing I’m interested in, but it’s some-
"" hing I feel needs to be looked at and
ixplained more closely.”
'■r£pickman said ethics and technol-
st igy are part of every class he tea-
’rtnes. He teaches classes on technol-
' ve >gy and human values, social and
i ^Iptical philosophy, the philosophy
)'" : >f media, and the introduction to
^philosophy honors course.
^^■ost students agree that his tea-
hing is unique.
Jarl Pallmeyer, a 1986 A&M jour-
alism graduate, took introduction
jo philosophy and philosophy of me-
'jlrom Hickman.
»Vhen I first got in a class with
,arry Hickman, I was just knocked
iut,’’ he said. “I just didn’t realize
hat there were so many different
vays of thinking. He really opened
ny eyes and got me to think about
Kings.
Larry Hickman
“To start a class, he would usually
bring in a New York Times and start
talking about how something the
government was doing today was re
lated to something Aristotle or an
other philosopher said or did. He
knew how to relate modern issues to
past philosophies.”
Alan Sembera, a senior journa
lism major, said Hickman made his
social and political philosophy class
different from any other class he
had taken.
“A lot of times there would be a
student in class who disagreed with
most of Dr. Hickman’s views,” he
said. “Instead of stifling or ignoring
the student’s views, Dr. Hickman
would give the student every oppor
tunity to give different views and
opinions in order to stimulate dis
cussion and debate in the class
room.”
Although teaching is what he says
he enjoys, becoming faculty adviser
for Gay Student Services was a job
Hickman did not want, but accepted
because no one else wanted to be as-
“I found the Bible no
more proves the exsis-
tence of God than do the
works of Murk Twain. I
found myself rejecting
more and more what most
Christians believe essen
tial to being a Christian —
that there is one personal
Cod. I believe that the hu
man problem has got to be
solved by humans. ”
— Larry Hickman
sociated with the organization, he
said.
“I support them because they’re
getting a raw deal,” he said. “They
do not have full rights as do the
other students on campus. Before
the Supreme Court battle, they
could not be a student organization,
they could not get student funding,
and they could not get a room in the
MSC like the 27 Christian organiza
tions on campus.”
Hickman said acknowledgment of
homosexuality is not important be
cause people in the organization
don’t promote homosexuality, they
argue for the rights of people to be
homosexual. For this reason, he said
his sexual preference is not impor
tant.
Eduardo Casas, a 1987 psychol
ogy graduate and president of the
A&M chapter of GSS, said Hickman
helped the organization gain recog
nition by giving it faculty support.
“When he joined the organiza
tion, it opened so many doors for us
and gave us all of our recognition
Photo by Mike C. Mulvey
because we finally had a sponsor,”
he said.
“What Dr. Hickman does is give
his input on how different decisions
will affect the organization and how
people will perceive our actions. He
explains legal matters, and he gives
us lots of constructive criticism and
lots of good ideas, but he allows us to
make our own decisions.”
Hickman also is involved in the
American Civil Liberties Union. Al
though he doesn’t participate in any
local activities, he said he is a mem
ber because of what the organization
represents.
“The ACLU has been accused of
being a communist organization, but
it’s not,” he said. “If it did support
communism, I wouldn’t be involved
with it. It takes stands with which 1
am utterly in opposition, but I sup
port them because the ACLU is the
best protector and best friend that
the underdog in the United States
has.”
Hickman did serve as adviser for
the student art films society, but he
did not re-file an application so the
club could be recognized as a stu
dent organization, because the stu
dents who started it graduated.
Pallmeyer was president of the art
films society for a semester. He said
Hickman had a way of making peo
ple see more than just the images on
the screen.
“I went to those films religiously,”
he said. “One of the greatest things
Dr. Hickman did for me is to de
velop my interest in films.
“Most people look at movies and
think they’re fun or entertaining,
but he taught me how to see the im
portance in understanding the way a
scene is shot. He taught me that film
can really be a transmission of fee
lings.”
For students who are interested in
classical films, Hickman will sponsor
a film series in the spring called Al
ternative Cinema.
“Unfortunately, it is possible to go
to college and come out without be
ing film literate,” he said. “The se
ries will try to take up the slack that
is present on the campus because
there isn’t a good classical film series.
“I’ll go back into the history of cin
ema and show some German ex
pressionists and Russian constructiv
ists. There are some films that one
would need to know to be consid
ered film literate, and I’ll try to cover
those films. I’ll pay special attention
to foriegn films and the kinds of
films that don’t really get a chance to
be seen.”
Although he supports organiza
tions and holds views considered lib
eral, especially at a conservative uni
versity like A&M, Hickman says he
enjoys teaching here because it gives
him a chance to influence students.
“It wouldn’t be much fun teaching
to a group of people who already
knew everything I had to say,” he
said. “What I am trying to do in
terms of teaching at a conservative
college is to get people to think
about who they are and what they
are doing.”
Rudolf Nureyev will dance
just a few
places in
America
this year.
Rudolf Tiureyev is one of the greatest, and certainly most
famous ballet dancers of all time. Since his world-rocking “leap
to freedom" from the Soviet Union in 1961, he has electrified
the world of dance. He has danced with all the world's great
companies, including the Paris Opera Ballet, which he now
directs.
MSC OPAS 16 will present Rudolf Tiureyev and Friends, the
Paris Opera Ballet, as just one of the seven great performances
on this season's Music Series, in addition to his performance
here, he will host an informal reception after the MSC OPAS
performance.
Only OPAS 16 season ticket holders will be guaranteed tickets
to this sure sell-out. Don't wait for single tickets and miss this
rare opportunity. OPAS 16 season tickets are now on sale for
the Music Series, and for the Theater Series, which will bring
six hit Broadway performances including My One and Only' and
A View From The Bridge'. Order yours today.
Tickets on sale at the MSC Box Office, Rudder Center,
Credit card order by phone 845-1234.
This season we bring you the world.
MSC Opera and Performing Arts Society • Memorial Student Center of Texas AStM University
Start practicing
for the real world.
Using an IBM® Personal System/2® computer to help you succeed in college can also prepare you to succeed in a
career. Because chances are, after you graduate, you’ll he working on an IBM computer.
Special September Back-to-school Prices!
Regular Special
Description Discount Price Sept. Price*
PS/2® Mod. 25, mono graphics, 640K, 2-720K drives, mouse, DOS 4.0, Microsoft
(MS) Windows 2.1, MS Word V4 (Academic Version).
$1,247
$1,181
PS/2 Mod. 30, color display, 640K, 1-720K drive, 20MB hardfile, mouse, IX)S 4.0,
MS Windows 2.1, MS Word V4 (Academic Version).
$2,094
$1,935
PS/2 Mod. 50Z, color display, 1MB memory, 1-1.44MB drive, 30MB hardfile, mouse,
DOS 4.0, MS Windows 2.1, MS Word V4 (Academic Version), MS Excel V2.
$3,367
$3,010
PS/2 Mod. 70, color display, 2MB memory, 1-1.44MB drive, 60MB hardfile, mouse,
DOS 4.0, MS Windows 2.1, MS Won! V4 (Academic Version), MS Excel V2.
$4,984
$4,510
Proprinter 11
$356
$332
MicroComputerCenter
GomputerSaks and Supplies
Mon.-Fri. 8a.m.-6p.m. Sat. 9a.m.-5p.m.
Memorial Student Center
==“==. The Bigger Picture
'Prices good for orders placed through Sept. 30, >988. Offer limited to qualified students, faculty and staff. Prices subject to change.
Microsoft (MS) is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation. Personal System/2, PS/2 and Proprinter are registered trademarks of IBM Corp.