Humanities

Exploring the medieval roots of romance

Stanford historian Jenna Phillips discusses the influence of medieval customs on Valentine’s Day traditions, highlighting how 12th- and 13th-century poets and musicians shaped our modern understanding of love.

From left: Ray Briggs, Julian Jara-Ettinger, and Joshua Landy talk

Beloved podcast 'Philosophy Talk' now available for free

Two seated students look intensely at a speaker as they perform Richard III

New English courses fuse creativity with literary criticism

Portrait of Jonathan Gienapp

Jonathan Gienapp wins Order of the Coif book award

Portrait of Al Camarillo

Four things to know about ethnic studies in California high schools

Portrait of Gerald Gillespie

Gerald Gillespie, devoted professor of German and comparative literature, dies at 92

Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité engraved between two columns

Historian chronicles one of the French Revolution’s most notorious figures

Collage of Keith Baker and cover of "Jean-Paul Marat"

Jean-Paul Marat: Prophet of Terror by Keith Baker, History

Collage of portraits, from left to right: Jennifer Burns, Dan Edelstein, Stephen H. Haber

Three H&S faculty become American Academy of Sciences and Letters members

Exploring the Louvre heist with French culture expert Cécile Alduy

Matthew Sommer wearing a light-blue collared shirt standing under one of arcades on Stanford's Main Quad

Matthew Sommer awarded American Historical Association prize

Stanford inaugurates new home of MLK Institute

Portrait of Ramón Saldívar

Ramón Saldívar receives MLA lifetime achievement award

Collage of Adam Johnson and the Wayfinder cover

The Wayfinder by Adam Johnson, English

Collage of Zipperstein and the book cover of the Philip Roth biography

Philip Roth: Stung by Life by Steven J. Zipperstein, History

Photo of Philip Roth book collection

Capturing the brilliant, complicated life of Philip Roth

Portrait of Adam Johnson in his office

Stanford Pulitzer winner’s new novel tells epic tale born from writing ‘every day for 10 years’

Student stands in front of the interactive screen in the Rumsey Map Center

New undergraduate study options combine data science with humanities and arts

On a stage, a woman sits in a chair and a man stands in front of a lecturn

New speaker forum to focus on building bridges across differences

The outside of the conference room with a quote from MLK, Jr. at the top
Photo by Misha Bruk for Stanford University

King Institute embraces new home on Main Quad

Image of Joel Cabrita

Joel Cabrita wins Aidoo-Snyder Book Prize

Portrait of Josiah Ober

Josiah Ober awarded 2025 Balzan Prize

Nicholas Jenkins wins Northern California Book Award

MLK Jr. surrounded by microphones. Atlanta, GA, 1966: Alabama candidate press conference

Three things to know about the recently released MLK records

Portrait of Blakey Vermeule

Blakey Vermeule named senior associate dean for the humanities and arts

A student lifts a rock in a tide pool to see what is beneath

Oceanic humanities project envisions new wave in education

Picture of the side gate of Stanford's Main Quad with no people

Seven faculty members awarded 2024-25 H&S dean's teaching awards

A portrait of Michael Friedman

Michael Friedman, who studied the connections between philosophy and science, has died

Portrait of Gordon Chang

Historian Gordon H. Chang reflects on his varied career with new book

Collage of Gordon H. Chang and the cover of his book

War, Race, and Culture by Gordon H. Chang, History

Photo of Ana Minian

Stanford historian's book on immigration wins PEN America nonfiction award

Nancy Packer speaks at the memorial for former Stanford President Richard W. Lyman in 2012.

Nancy Huddleston Packer, award-winning writer who served as director of Creative Writing Program, has died

Portrait of Josiah Ober

Josiah Ober’s mission to revitalize democracy and civic education

Judith Richardson answers a question from a student (facing away) who has their hand raised

New course showcases humanities, social science offerings for undergrads

Stanford initiative seeks to bring more languages online

Lerone A .Martin wins James W. C. Pennington Award

Black and white illustration of samurai on horseback

New book explores historical fiction’s role in the rise of Japanese nationalism before World War II

Photo of James Reichert and the cover of his book (black, red, and grey with Japanese woodblock art)

Literature for the Masses by James Reichert, East Asian Languages and Cultures

Collage of Emanuele Lugli and the cover of Lavinia's Wondrous Portraits

Lavinia’s Wondrous Portraits by Emanuele Lugli, Art and Art History

Portrait of Nicholas Jenkins

Nicholas Jenkins wins Warren-Brooks Award

Photo of Bill Mahrt singing and looking to the left as Gregorian Chant is written out behind him

William P. Mahrt, beloved scholar of early music, has died

Portrait of Chang-rae Lee

Chang-rae Lee elected to American Academy of Arts and Letters

A group of five people sing and laugh together

Stanford historian’s documentary coming to PBS in March

Commemorating MLK’s 1967 speech at Stanford

Image of Margaret Cohen

Margaret Cohen receives National Endowment for the Humanities grant

Portrait of Graciela De Pierris

Graciela Teresa de Pierris, historian of modern philosophy, dies at 74

Portrait of Nicholas Jenkins

New book explores poet W.H. Auden’s life between two world wars

An old book showing poetry

New Center for Poetics ‘supports and encourages the vitality of the field’

Portrait of Debra Satz

Debra Satz awarded Romanell-Phi Beta Kappa Professorship

Portrait of Adrian Daub

Why cancel culture doesn’t exist

Two people sit with their backs together, in disagreement

Teaching skills for challenging times

Elizabeth Bernhardt-Kamil

Elizabeth Buchter Bernhardt-Kamil, longtime director of the Language Center, pioneering scholar, and beloved mentor, has died

Portrait of Jonathan Gienapp

Historian Jonathan Gienapp challenges originalist interpretations of the Constitution

Photo of Dafna Zur

Dafna Zur receives Korean Order of Culture Merit

Photo of Caroline Winterer

A ‘deep time revolution’ paved the way to American modernity, Stanford historian asserts

Photo of Caroline Winterer and cover of How the New World Became Old

How the New World Became Old by Caroline Winterer, History

Photo of Emanuele Lugli

Stanford art historian uncovers portrait linked to famed female Renaissance painter

Photo of Memorial Court

H&S welcomes 19 new faculty members

Collage of The Cancel Culture Panic cover and a photo of Adrian Daub

The Cancel Culture Panic by Adrian Daub, Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages

Cover of Against Constitutional Originalism and photo of Jonathan Gienapp

Against Constitutional Originalism by Jonathan Gienapp, History

Image of Molly Antopol

For writer Molly Antopol, silences create room for fiction

Image of Rachel Jean-Baptiste

Rachel Jean-Baptiste receives National Endowment for the Humanities grant

Image of Wendy Salkin

Philosopher Wendy Salkin tackles the ethics of speaking for others

Image of Aracelis Girmay

For poet Aracelis Girmay, poetry is a way of thinking through complexity

Image of the cover of the book Laws of the Spirit next to an image of its author, Arial Mayse

Laws of the Spirit: Ritual, Mysticism, and the Commandments in Early Hasidism by Ariel Evan Mayse, Religious Studies

Image of Giovanna Ceserani next to an image of the cover of her book A World Made by Travel

A World Made by Travel: The Digital Grand Tour by Giovanna Ceserani, Classics

Image of Eve Clark

Eve Clark named 2024 British Academy fellow

Three packets of European cigarettes sitting upright on a table

Philip Morris made cigarettes at Auschwitz in the 1990s

Image of Nicholas Jenkins alongside the cover of his book The Island

The Island: War and Belonging in Auden’s England by Nicholas Jenkins, English

Image of Kathryn Olivarius

Kathryn Olivarius receives 2024 Dan David Prize

A headshot of Wendy Salkin next to the cover of her book Speaking for Others

Speaking for Others: The Ethics of Informal Political Representation by Wendy Salkin, Philosophy

Image of Alice Rayner standing in front of a large tree.

Alice Rayner, beloved theater professor, dies at 76

A woman stands in front of a long table with six chess boards and six seated players

Iranian Studies program hosts chess champion and women's rights activist

The cover of the book The Chinese Computer alongside a photo of its author, Thomas Mullaney

The Chinese Computer: A Global History of the Information Age by Thomas Mullaney, History

Headshots of seven people

Seven faculty members awarded 2023-24 H&S dean's teaching awards

Three 1980s computer screens display Chinese characters

80,000-plus characters, one keyboard: China’s fight to join the digital age

Image of John Giammalva

Longtime student champion John Giammalva has died at 65

Image of Wendy Salkin

Wendy Salkin honored with Phi Beta Kappa teaching excellence award

Image of Muwekma garden plants and a person watering the seedlings with a watering can

New gift will help Stanford reimagine Native American Studies through a 21st-century Indigenous lens

Image of author Ana Raquel Minian and the cover of their book In the Shadows of Liberty

In the Shadow of Liberty: The Invisible History of Immigrant Detention in the United States by Ana Raquel Minian, History

Two Stanford scholars awarded Guggenheim Fellowship

Image of Joel Cabrita

Joel Cabrita receives National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences book award

Image of Rachel Jean-Baptiste

Rachel Jean-Baptiste awarded 2024 David H. Pinkney Prize

Learning the history of evolution and primatology

Marina Johnson and Ava Jeffs stand under the arcades along Stanford's Main Quad

Students will explore Taylor Swift’s lyrics as literature in new course

Marjorie Perloff standing in a black suit

Poetry scholar and critic Marjorie Perloff has died

Kenneth Fields wearing glasses and wide-brimmed hat

Kenneth Fields, longtime English professor and acclaimed poet, dies at 84

Image of the book Measuring in the Renaissance next to an image of its author, Emanuele Lugli

Measuring in the Renaissance by Emanuele Lugli, Art and Art History

Photo of Stephen Hinton alongside the cover of his book.

Kurt Weills Musiktheater: Vom Songspiel zur American Opera by Stephen Hinton, Music

Headshot of Jennifer Burns alongside the cover of her book, Milton Friedman

Milton Friedman: The Last Conservative by Jennifer Burns, History

Ato Quayson, wearing a royal-blue blazer and a yellow-gold scarf, leans against a pillar

New Department of African and African American Studies marks historic moment at Stanford

Image of Lerone A. Martin laughing in Stanford arcade

Stanford’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute celebrates the MLK holiday

A photo of a group of books

2023: A year of books written by H&S faculty

The cover of the book Multiracial Identities in Colonial French Africa with a black-and-white photo of French African people next to a photo of Rachel Jean-Baptiste wearing glasses and smiling

Multiracial Identities in Colonial French Africa: Race, Childhood, and Citizenship by Rachel Jean-Baptiste, History and Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Photo of Jean-Pierre Dupuy and the cover of the book The War That Must Not Occur, which shows the book's title in white type on a black background

The War That Must Not Occur by Jean-Pierre Dupuy, Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages

Peter Stansky wins 2023 Peter Davison Award

How waste from the mining industry has perpetuated apartheid-like policies in South Africa

Cover of the book Residual Governance: How South Africa Foretells Planetary Futures showing a Black man bent at the waist using a pickax to mine a rocky area.

Residual Governance: How South Africa Foretells Planetary Futures by Gabrielle Hecht, History

Photo of Josiah Ober smiling and wearing a white collared shirt

Josiah Ober receives 2023 Barry Prize

Photo of the span of sandstone arches that constitute the arcade in front of Building 1 facing Stanford's Main Quad

H&S welcomes 21 new faculty members

Photo of Clayborne Carson with a gray mustache and short beard, wearing glasses and a dark-red sweater

Clayborne Carson honored with 2023 Freedom Award

Photo of Shelley Fisher Fishkin wearing a black sweater and a black-and-white patterned scarf

Shelley Fisher Fishkin receives 2023 American Studies Association lifetime achievement award

Kathryn Olivarius awarded AHA Prize in American History

Louise Glück

Remembering Louise Glück

The future of democracy rests on the civic bargain