From: Gerald_A_Levy@MSN.COM
Date: Sat Jan 15 2005 - 10:17:06 EST
Remembering Bob Heilbroner takes me back a few years. In the Fall of 1976, when I enrolled in the graduate program in the Economics Department at the New School for Social Research (now "New School University" -- yuck!) Bob Heilbroner was the best known faculty member. He was also the best known graduate _of_ the Economics Department -- he had studied with Adolph Lowe (who was a professor emeriti in '76 who occasionally -- depending on his health -- offered seminars) many years before and _The Worldly Philosophers_ was accepted in lieu of a dissertation. Adolph Lowe (a fascinating and important figure in his own right) was his most influential mentor. Lowe, I believe, was especially influential in encouraging him to seriously study methodology and the history of thought. Politically, they were not all that dissimilar either -- both were social democrats. Within the Department, Heilbroner taught courses mainly in the history of economic thought -- most notably the 100-level 2-semester HET sequence which most of the new students enrolled in (the first semester was a required course for an M.A. in political economy). That's how I first met him. I thought he was an excellent teacher -- but he did have a rather dry style. He mostly lectured and wasn't exactly very animated in the classroom. But, he was always well-prepared and knowledgeable. He encouraged discussion in the classroom -- even though these were big classes -- but generally got few takers. I will never forget the first day of that class. The class of perhaps 70 students was stunned by his demanding requirements and expectations: he told all present (mostly new students like myself) that if they received a final grade below A- then they should consider that to be a failing grade and should consider dropping-out of graduate school! Once you got to know him, though, he was a very likeable and supportive faculty member. Like the rest of the economics faculty at the NSSR, he preferred to be called by his first name. All of the students called him Bob. This level of informality was a distinctive feature of the Department and was a progressive practice intended to break-down the traditional lines of demarcation that separate faculty from students. Like most of the other faculty, he also attended social functions sponsored by the Department and/or the Economics Society -- the student organization that represented students (with voice and vote!) at Department meetings. If he saw promise in a student, he would go out of his way to talk to and encourage that person. Even though he socialized, he was actually a rather shy person who, one could sense, felt awkward at such occasions. He had a very good -- but unappreciated -- sense of humor. In the classroom, he had such a dry sense of humor that most students didn't even recognize it. I remember on several occasions he made humorous comments (I can't remember what they were now) and hardly anyone recognized them for what they were. One time he made a joke in class and I started laughing. All eyes were on me -- other students glared at me quizzically as if to ask 'why is Jerry laughing?'. It made me wonder whether it wasn't a joke after all -- but Bob reassured me with a twinkle of acknowledgement and a half-smile. Another occasion comes to mind. After my first semester I was elected a representative of the Economics Society and, along with the other representatives and most of the faculty, we were waiting in a seminar room for the Department meeting to begin. Ross Thomson -- who was at the time a new faculty member who taught the "Introduction to Political Economy" sequence (a 2 semester required course in the p.e. program on reading the three volumes of _Capital_) -- complained about all of the time it was taking him to read and grade the student papers for his courses. Ross had a reputation for meticulously reading papers and making copious comments. Anyway, Ross asked Bob how he managed. Bob said -- with a perfectly straight face -- that his system is to make a pile of all of the papers and throw them up in the air. Those that landed on one side of the room passed and those that fell on the other side failed! Not a single person in the room laughed. Not a single person smiled or smirked. A pregnant pause ensued. During the pause, everyone else looked at each other as if to ask "You don't think he's serious, do you?". Finally, one of the student representatives (Robert U?) asked "You don't really do that, do you?". Slowly -- with a timing that a professional comic would have appreciated -- a big smile came to Bob's face. No one questioned Bob's integrity. He treated everyone fairly and, if he thought that someone within the Dept. was wronged, would fight tirelessly on that person's behalf. He was distressed, however, by the intrigue that sometimes accompanied faculty hirings and re-hirings. He found it .. well ... unseemly and distasteful. At the end of my first year, two political economy faculty members were not being re-hired (primarily due to complaints from students who objected to their theoretical perspectives!) -- Alfredo Medio and Harry Cleaver (who, as you know, went on to make important contributions and have outstanding careers). Well, I had a bright idea. I went to Bob's office and asked if I could speak to him. When I mentioned Alfredo and Harry a pained look came over his face. I suggested that the students and faculty sponsor a going away party for the outgoing faculty members and asked him if he thought it was a good idea. A _huge_ smile came across his face and he reached into his wallet and handed me three $20 bills. And that's how we were able to have a going away party. There were many things in the late 1970's that made the New School Economics Department unique (e.g. over 90% of the students considered themselves to be Marxist and all but 3 faculty members also considered themselves to be Marxist; there was only one truly mainstream marginalist faculty member [David Schwartzman -- whose specialization was industrial organization]). One such thing was the _emphasis_ within the Dept. on the history of economic thought and methodology. More than any other faculty member, Bob Heilbroner was responsible for this emphasis. Under his tutelage, several generations of NSSR students were able to specialize in these areas and write HET dissertations -- including many on Marx and classical political economy. This contrasted sharply with other Economics Departments around the country and the world which de-valued HET and discouraged and even prevented students from studying and writing dissertations on HET. Even today, most Eco. Depts. do not take HET seriously. Within the NSSR, he helped to stimulate the study of HET. Outside of the NSSR, he was influential in popularizing HET -- most notably with the best-selling book, _The Worldly Philosophers_. I suspect that his popular books -- of which there were many -- will be what he will be most remembered for by those who never attended the NSSR. Former students -- like myself -- will remember him for so much more. In solidarity, Jerry
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Tue Jan 18 2005 - 00:00:01 EST