Last Lecture
Last Lectures
Politics: Idealism vs. Realism
November 18, 2009
Even the last words begin something new’.
On November 18, 2009: Professor dr. W.J. Witteveen, Dean of the Liberal Arts and Sciences faculty and Professor at the Faculty of Law, provided the first Last Lecture titled Politics: Idealism vs. Realism in lecture room TZ 04.
Professor Willem Witteveen spoke eloquently of politics and the important role of political activity in community life. He believes that the art of speaking and acting can generate new beginnings or political movements in an environment where new beginnings prevent political stagnation. Moreover, Professor Witteveen supplements these somewhat abstract ideas with more tangible concepts as he elucidates on what it is like to engage oneself in a political career and the dilemmas one faces between ones own ideals vs. the realities of the political world.
Professor Witteveen navigated through the elaborate and complex works of Hannah Arendt, Aristotle, Kant and Machiavelli to name a few, with the aim of exploring the duties and responsibilities of citizens in democratic society from very different perspectives. He then turns his attention to the drastic evolution of political activity from the time period of Athenian democracy to the present, ‘audience democracy’ dominated by the phenomenon of mediatisation.
Professor Witteveen departed with the idea that ultimately, finding the balance between idealism and realism is a journey pursued within oneself. Moreover, he believes that expression through rituals, using poetry as an example, is a method in which one can establish this balance and not only find ones own ideals but express them through public speaking.
For more information on Professor Willem Witteveen
The video of this lecture can be viewed here
