WAR AND HUMAN DIGNITY, 1789-1991

A DINNER TALK

with Prof. Jose Eos Trinidad

This talk interrogates how wars have been central in the creation of our concept of “human dignity.” It draws on key wars and episodes from the French Revolution to the fall of the Soviet Union. Using these historical periods, the talk explores themes like: (1) how revolutionary wars selectively defined who had dignity and who did not, (2) how capital and empire created new forms of dehumanization, (3) how the world wars have denied human dignity through bureaucracy and technology, and (4) how expanding definitions of human rights have provoked backlash. The talk takes inspiration from Eric Hobsbawm’s tetralogy on world history (The Age of Revolution, Capital, Empire, and Extremes) and invites conversations on historically situating the concept of human dignity.

This event is open to students, recent graduates, faculty and Friends of the Berkeley Institute. Dinner will be provided. RSVP is required.

Date: Thursday, September 17
Time: 6:00PM - 7:15PM
Location: Berkeley Institute (2134 Allston Way, 2nd floor)