Tom Hesse

Why I teach:
Like most students in high school, I didn't know much about philosophy. I knew some guy named Socrates was involved with the field, and there was also a lot of talking that went on. I began my undergraduate studies here at UNI in 1995 with a major in history. Needing to fulfill some electives, I signed up for a couple philosophy courses — one introductory course and another on Karl Marx. Within a short period of time I had declared a second major.

Philosophy is the field that discusses the most important topics that pertain to human existence: reality, truth, religion, art, ethics, politics, and many others. Fast-forward a few years and I now teach the Humanities I/II/III sequence of courses at UNI. These courses provide a survey of the history, literature, religion, philosophy, and art of the Western world. In my sections I stress that part of what it is to be a citizen (as opposed to just an individual) is to understand and appreciate what we have received from previous generations.