BRATTLEBORO — Amherst College professor Barry O'Connell will consider why the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson continue to inspire in a talk at Brooks Memorial Library in Brattleboro on April 4, at 7 p.m.
His talk, “An Emerson for Our Time,” is part of the Vermont Humanities Council's First Wednesdays lecture series and is free and open to the public.
Drawing on Emerson's essays “The American Scholar,” “Self-Reliance,” and “Experience,” O'Connell will explore the many ways Emerson's writings continue to offer insights that can make our lives more open and fruitful.
O'Connell is the James E. Ostendarp Professor of English at Amherst College. He began his teaching career in college by creating alternative primary and secondary school programs in the basements of public housing projects in Cambridge and Boston.
He founded the first Headstart program in the greater Boston area, as well as the first Upward Bound program for middle and high school dropouts. After earning a Ph.D in the history of American Civilization, he returned to his commitment to public education, concentrating on subject-based teacher development shaped jointly with teachers.
In his college teaching, O'Connell has sought to widen the understanding of American history and literature by offering courses that included African American, American Indian, Asian American, Latino, Southern, and working-class experiences and writings.
The Vermont Humanities Council's First Wednesdays series is free, accessible to people with disabilities, and open to the public. For more information, contact Brooks Memorial Library at 802-254-5290, or contact the Vermont Humanities Council at 802-262-2626 or visit www.vermonthumanities.org.