National Humanities Center Presents Speaker Dr. Raymond Tallis
News Release Date: October 26, 2010
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Research Triangle Park, N.C. Traveling from the University of Liverpool where he is Visiting Professor in the School of English, Dr. Raymond Tallis will be speaking at 5 p.m. on Nov. 9 at the National Humanities Center. He will be discussing the rise of biologism in the humanities and answering questions on the topic.
His visit to the National Humanities Center is made possible through the Meymandi Fellowship for distinguished visitors that has brought other distinguished speakers, such as E. O. Wilson, Michael Pollan, Mark Stoneking, Oliver Sacks, Wole Soyinka, and A.S. Byatt.
A philosopher, poet, novelist, and cultural critic Dr. Tallis has been listed as one of the top living polymaths in the world. He was also a physician and clinical scientist until his recent retirement in 2006, a decision he made in order to further his career as a full-time writer.
Dr. Raymond Tallis began his career caring for the elderly and conducting research in stroke, epilepsy, and neurological rehabilitation. He trained as a doctor at Oxford University and at St. Thomas' in London before he became Professor of Geriatric Medicine at the University of Manchester. He also served as a consultant physician in Health Care of the Elderly in Salford before his retirement and remains as Visiting Professor at St. George's Hospital Medical School at the University of London.
In the past twenty years, Dr. Tallis has published fiction, three volumes of poetry, and eighteen books on the philosophy of the mind, philosophical anthropology, literary theory, the nature of art, and cultural criticism. Along with over a hundred articles in Prospect, Times Literary Supplement, and multiple other outlets, his books offer critiques of current intellectual trends and a different approach to the understanding of human consciousness, the nature of language, and of what it is to be a human being. Dr. Tallis has received two honorary degrees for his work from the University of Hull in 1997 and the University of Manchester in 2002.
His most recent publications include The Enduring Significance of Parmenides: Unthinkable Thought (Continuum, 2007), which investigates the nature and origin of the cognitive revolution that launched Western thought; The Kingdom of Infinite Space: A Fantastical Journey Round Your Head (Atlantic, 2008), in which he considers the mystery of embodiment; and Hunger (Acumen, 2008) that delves into the complex drives that make human life what it is.
Dr. Raymond Tallis makes regular appearances at Hay, Cheltenham, Edinburgh, and other book festivals and lectures. He was also identified in Prospect Magazine as one of the top 100 public intellectuals in the United Kingdom in 2004.
» Reserve space for this event, Tuesday, November 9, 2010 at 5:00 p.m.
About the National Humanities Center
The National Humanities Center, located in the Research Triangle Park of North Carolina, is a privately incorporated independent institute for advanced study in the humanities. Since 1978 the Center has awarded fellowships to leading scholars in the humanities, whose work at the Center has resulted in the publication of more than 1,200 books in all fields of humanistic study. The Center also sponsors programs to strengthen the teaching of the humanities in secondary and higher education.