Speaker: Richard Gunderman
Based on the work of Simone Weil and Iris Murdoch, two of the most formidable women in philosophy in the 20th century, this talk makes the case that how we direct our attention has a bigger impact on the moral dimension of our lives than our sense of right and wrong. In our current political climate, it is a really timely topic.
Richard Gunderman, MD, PhD, is Professor of Radiology, IU School of Medicine. He is a Scientech Club member and past speaker.
Program: The Power of Attention
Speaker: Richard Gunderman, MD, PhD, Chancellor’s Professor of Radiology, IU School of Medicine, Scientech Club member
Introduced By: Bill Halsema
Attendance: NESC: 103, Zoom: 28
Guest(s): Ed Sheehey, Tina Pasquinelli, Tom Parker
Scribe: Bill Dick
Editor: Ed Nitka
Talk’s Zoom recording found at: https://www.scientechclubvideos.org/zoom/04062026.mp4
Scientech Club had the pleasure of welcoming back member Dr. Richard Gunderman, Professor of Radiology (and other departments) at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He has given both scientific and philosophical lectures. This talk was on the philosophical subject of Attention.
He focused on three women who wrote on attention. They took notice or special care of people and ideas. He told us about Heraclitus, the Greek who thought that there was harmony in bending back. The first woman was Simone Weil, a Jewish lady from Alsace. She adopted Christianity. At the Sorbonne in Paris, she was first in her class. She thought that the development of the faculty of attention formed the real object and almost the sole interest of studies. She thought that to give one’s attention to a sufferer was almost a miracle. She said that attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.
The next woman is Dame Iris Murdoch who was a philosopher and novelist. She won the Booker prize in England. The great task in life is to find reality, she thought. Moral change comes from an attention to the world whose natural result is a decrease in egoism. Dr. Gunderman gave an example of Ms. Murdoch’s prose.
The third woman cited is Marilynne Robinson, an Iowan, who won a Pulitzer Prize for Literature. She thought that the Earth was an interesting planet. It deserves all the attention that we can give it. Her novel “Gilead” is a must-read according to Dr. Gunderman, who gave many examples of her writing.
Dr. Gunderman was at his philosophical best today. He mentioned that the second reading of a book is a most rewarding one. As usual, he stimulated us and made us think – and give attention to everything and everyone.
Richard Gunderman
