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Professor of History Maurice Isserman published an op-ed about American Democratic Socialist Michael Harrington in The New York Times (3/3/12). In “The Poverty of An Idea,” Isserman notes that libertarian writer Charles Murray has lately kept alive the idea of a “culture of poverty, the theory that poor people are trapped by distorted norms and aspirations and not merely material deprivation." Yet, Michael Harrington was in the forefront of analyzing poverty as a social problem, Isserman notes.

The Hamilton College Department of Dance and Movement Studies will present its annual Spring Dance Concert on Friday, March 2, and Saturday, March 3, at 8 p.m., in Wellin Hall. The performance will feature student dancers and choreography by Hamilton faculty Sandra Stanton and Paris Wilcox ’95 in addition to guest choreographers Misung Hong, Heather Koniz ’04 and Jeremy Raia.  

Hamilton’s annual “Do it in the Dark” Dorm Energy Battle is in its final stretch. The campus-wide competition between residence halls began Feb. 13 and will end March 5. The residence hall that reduces its energy consumption the most will win a weekend breakfast catered by Bon Appétit.

Hamilton’s 2012 Public Speaking Competition will take place on Saturday, March 3, from 1-4 p.m. in the Chapel. In this annual event students will compete for three different prizes: The McKinney Prize, The Clark Prize and The Warren E. Wright Prize.

Since gaining nationhood in the 18th century, the United States has been directly involved in dozens of armed military conflicts. The standard that the government has used and still uses to justify military engagements is the just war theory, which posits that a nation can, morally, only become involved in a military conflict that adheres to a set of ethical criteria. Andrew Fiala, professor of philosophy and director of the Ethics Center at California State University, Fresno, discussed the theory on March 1.

Nancy Sorkin Rabinowitz, Margaret Bundy Scott Professor of Comparative Literature, recently presented her ongoing work to faculty of the University of California at San Diego and Friends of Classics, and at the University of San Diego.

The lights dimmed, and a set of eyes stared out at the audience, stoically, from a projection screen. A voice soon followed, as the video panned out to reveal artist Marina Abramovic in full form. In a clip from her recently released documentary, The Artist is Present, Abramovic explains that embracing silence is essential to the creation of art—and the audience did just that as Abramovic’s voice ceased to accompany her image.

Professor of English Steven Yao delivered a lecture at the University of Florida in Gainesville on Feb. 24. Invited as part of the series in American Studies, Yao spoke on "Pacific Rim Encounters: Questions of Method and Archive in 'Transpacific' American Studies."

On a spectacular Sunday afternoon, Feb. 26, students on the Program in Washington visited Arlington National Cemetery, the final resting place for 14,000 veterans.  The highlight of the visit was witnessing the changing of the guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns by soldiers of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment.

The lecture by performance artist Marina Abramovic has been moved from the Chapel to the Wellin Performance Hall.  “The Past, Present and Future of Performance Art” will be held Wednesday, Feb. 29, at 6:30 p.m. Please note both the time and venue changes. The lecture is free and open to the public.