History

Seventy years after the Trinity nuclear test, remembering the victims of atomic warfare is of utmost importance.

Kosovo's parallel education system demonstrates the state of memory and competitive history in the country.

On the ethics of studying abroad in a post-conflict city like Sarajevo.

Debating the Confederate flag's meaning requires an analysis of its history.

The difficult struggle between saving antiquities and practicing cultural colonialism.

In Serbia, traces of postwar trauma can be found in the use of a single word.

Lingering ultranationalism continues to plague Serbian politics, identity and attempts to seek justice.

The captain going down with the ship is a trope used in literature and movies, although it does stem from reality. Captain Smith’s decision to go down with the ship is focused on in Titanic during the chaotic sinking scenes, and captains of boats that are beginning to sink or could sink regularly exclaim that … Continue reading "Going Down With The Ship"

One of the many reasons that weighing ethical dilemmas is such a challenge is because we’re often faced with a conflict between measurable and immeasurable value. We see this often in relation to environmental issues. Because we can’t place an exact value on the intrinsic worth of nature, we struggle to cognitively compare environmental health with economic benefits. Thus, many companies pursue profit over environmental wellness, … Continue reading "Mes Aynak’s Intrinsic Cultural Value"

The Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics is proud to announce that Christopher Hager will be the 2015-2016 Nancy Schaenen Endowed Visiting Scholar of Ethics. Dr. Hager received his bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and his Ph.D. from Northwestern University. Currently he is Associate Professor of English at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, where he teaches … Continue reading "Frederick Douglass Prize Winner will be the 2015-2016 Schaenen Scholar"

Should refugees seeking asylum be housed in former concentration camp barracks? Schwerte, Germany, is planning to house 20 asylum seekers in a satellite post at former Buchewald concentration camp. While the barracks were used for guard’s quarters and not as housing for the camp’s slaves, some refugee groups have said that it is in poor … Continue reading "Repurposing Buchenwald: Housing Refugees"

This Guest Scholar post was written by Rebecca Schindler, professor of Classical Studies at DePauw University.  Seven thousand years of history in the Middle East is on the brink of being wiped out. The on-going civil war in Syria and the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have placed the region’s … Continue reading "Conflict Antiquities: Is there a Future for the Past?"

Due to recent campus controversies, DePauw University’s administration is in the process of deciding upon an additional distribution requirement to the curriculum. If passed, they will call it the “M” credit for “multicultural”. This new addition would not affect the current students at DePauw, as it would have to be ‘grandfathered’ into the curriculum for … Continue reading "The “M” Requirement: Building Bridges"

Hypocrisy is the practice of claiming to moral standards or beliefs to which one’s own behavior does not conform. Hypocrites are usually disliked and seen as lacking moral fiber. Many people claim that nothing annoys them more about a person than hypocrisy. I believe this is because we as a race dislike criticism and to … Continue reading "Hypocrisy: The Universal Trait of Mankind"

By Erik Kwakkel This post was originally posted at Medieval Books, and is posted here with Dr. Kwakkel’s permission.  Old furniture, broken cups, worn-out shoes and stinky mattresses: we don’t think twice about throwing things out that we don’t need anymore. And books? Here things are a bit different. Apart from the fact that you may find … Continue reading "Destroying Medieval Books – And Why That’s Useful"

One would certainly hope that, as far as environmental regulation goes, we are better off than we were fifty years ago. We would hope that novels like Rachel Carson’s ground-shifting Silent Spring, a work chronicling the dangers of the U.S. chemical industry, have made enough of an effect to prevent the author’s dystopian predictions from becoming a … Continue reading "Politicizing a Tragedy, 30 Years after Bhopal"

The Conflict Studies Program, The Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics, and the Department of Art and Art History are thrilled to announce an upcoming visit by artists Jon Rubin and Dawn Weleski, and chef Robert Sayre, of Conflict Kitchen. We will welcome them to campus the week immediately following fall break. Public events include: Public … Continue reading "Conflict Kitchen will be hosted Oct. 27-30 by Prindle, Conflict Studies and the Art Department"

Fifty years, two months, and one week ago, a US destroyer was attacked (or was it?) by the North Vietnamese in the Gulf of Tonkin, off the coast of North Vietnam. This event marks the beginning of the Vietnam War era and the controversies that would come to surround the conflict. Things only continued to get … Continue reading "History’s (Un)Truths"

Come out to Prindle on Monday, October 13 at 5:30 PM for a dinner and discussion about the ethics of cultural appropriation. Cultural appropriation occurs when someone from one culture takes or uses something from another culture. What is taken can be a physical artifact, such as when an archaeologist takes an ancient relic and … Continue reading "Cultural Appropriation Dinner & Discussion on Oct.13"

Come out to the Prindle Institute on Wednesday, September 17 at 8 PM for an outdoor screening of the 2014 documentary The Trials of Muhammad Ali. Movie snacks will be provided including apple cider and DIY s’mores around Prindle’s fire pit. Bring blankets to enjoy this film on the Prindle Courtyard lawn as you get a closer look at the … Continue reading "Prindle and Conflict Studies to host ‘The Trials of Muhammad Ali’ outdoor screening on September 17"