Publicity Page .
Intellectual cowardice is our enemy.
It snuffs the illumination of desire, muddies the clarity of argument, and deflates the ballooning of democracy. Intellectual inquiry, on the other hand, inflates economies of justice and buoys the spirit. Posing a question or formulating a problem in precise language has the power to channel desperation into action and paralysis into movement. Students need power and knowledge. I design interdisciplinary courses that explore how Puritan community gave way to individualiism in the 18th century, how individual behaviors emerged as personal identities in the 19th century, and how the personal became the political in 20th century America.