RELEASED: April 25, 2001

DANVILLE, KY —Ted Cohen, professor of philosophy at the University of Chicago, will give this year's Phi Beta Kappa lecture at Centre College on May 7. The free lecture, entitled "Jokes," will take place at 7 p.m. in the Norton Center Board Room.

Dr. Cohen, author of Jokes: Philosophical Thoughts on Joking Matters, will discuss the phenomena of jokes and the phenomenon of joke-telling, with attention to how jokes work and why they are told. He will look at what makes or breaks a joke and address how jokes about sensitive issues can sometimes upset our sense of morality while, at other times, relieve us from "unbearable affronts like crude racism and stubborn prejudice."

The focus of Dr. Cohen's research and teaching is on the philosophy of art, the history of the philosophy of art, and the philosophy of language. Past president of the American Society for Aesthetics, he is the co-editor of Essays in Kant's Aesthetics and Pursuits of Reason. He is the author of numerous articles and has been the recipient of the University of Chicago's Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching.

Ted Cohen's visit to the College is sponsored by the Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar Program. Each year, the program makes approximately twelve distinguished scholars available to visit nearly100 colleges and universities. The scholars spend two days on campus, meeting informally with students and faculty members, taking part in classroom discussions, and giving a public lecture on campus. The purpose of the program is to contribute to the intellectual life of the college/university by making possible an exchange of ideas between the Visiting Scholars and the resident faculty and students.

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