Nov. 1, 2013 - Dr. Colin Heydt, associate professor of philosophy at the University of South Florida, will examine the philosophy of the Declaration of Independence during a free public lecture at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 12, in the Burke Auditorium at King’s College.
Heydt’s lecture, entitled “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness: Natural Rights in the Eighteenth Century,” will examine Thomas Jefferson’s famous statement: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
He will discuss this statement’s meaning, the origin of Jefferson’s moral and political rhetoric, and what alternatives understandings of rights Jefferson rejected.
A member of the Philosophy Department at the University of South Florida since 2005, Heydt focuses on the history of ethics and political philosophy. He is the author of “Rethinking Mill's Ethics: Character and Aesthetic Education,” as well as chapters in edited collections and articles published in the “Journal of the History of Philosophy,” “British Journal for the History of Philosophy,” “History of Philosophy Quarterly,” and “Hume Studies.”
Heydt has been the recipient of fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the University of South Florida Humanities Institute. He is currently a member at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. He earned his doctorate from Boston University in 2003.
The Burke Auditorium is located in the William G. McGowan School of Business on North River Street. Parking will be available in on-campus lots. For more information, please contact Dr. Bernard Prusak, director, McGowan Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility, at 208-5900, ext. 5689.
King’s College is a Catholic College sponsored by the Congregation of Holy Cross.
Dr. Colin Heydt