The piece by President Eisgruber ’83 titled “Free Speech at Princeton” (President’s Page, June 7) is a welcome statement of what a Princeton education should be all about. Fifty years ago I remember a Euro History course covering roughly 1770 through 1848 taught by a conservative historian. Following that course, Arno Mayer taught Euro History from 1848 through roughly 1920 from a Marxist viewpoint. It was fascinating to view history from two radically different viewpoints and opened our eyes to different ways of looking at things, and thus we developed a respect for those differences. Thanks to President Eisgruber for reaffirming Princeton’s dedication to free and open discussion, no matter how offensive.
The piece by President Eisgruber ’83 titled “Free Speech at Princeton” (President’s Page, June 7) is a welcome statement of what a Princeton education should be all about. Fifty years ago I remember a Euro History course covering roughly 1770 through 1848 taught by a conservative historian. Following that course, Arno Mayer taught Euro History from 1848 through roughly 1920 from a Marxist viewpoint. It was fascinating to view history from two radically different viewpoints and opened our eyes to different ways of looking at things, and thus we developed a respect for those differences. Thanks to President Eisgruber for reaffirming Princeton’s dedication to free and open discussion, no matter how offensive.