Professor Jan Assmann (University of Konstanz) delivers keynote lecture of BU’s Comparative Studies of the Premodern World Initiative
Keynote Lecture
Monday, April 2
The Castle, 225 Bay State Road
4-6pm
Difference and Hermeneutics: Comparative Approaches to the Premodern World
Guest Speaker: Prof. Jan Assmann (University of Konstanz)
Discussant: Professor Christopher I. 
Lehrich (BU, Religion)
GUEST SPEAKER BIO:
Jan Assmann was Professor of Egyptology at the University of Heidelberg from 1976 – 2003 and is now Honorary Professor of Cultural and Religious Studies at Constance, Germany. A specialist on ancient Egyptian religion, literature and history, he has also published books and articles in the area of cultural theory (“cultural memory”), history of religion (“monotheism and cosmotheism”), literary theory and historical anthropology. As a visiting professor, he has taught in Paris, Jerusalem, and at several universities in the US. He has received honorary degrees from Münster, Yale, and Jerusalem. Assmann is a member of the Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften, the European Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Academia Europea.
His books in English include Moses the Egyptian (Harvard, 1997), The Mind of Egypt: History and Meaning in the Time of the Pharaohs (Harvard 2003), The Search for God in Ancient Egypt (Cornell 2002), Death and Salvation in Ancient Egypt (Cornell 2006); Of God and Gods (Madison 2008);Religion and Cultural Memory (Stanford UP 2005); The Price of Monotheism (Stanford UP 2009); andCultural Memory and Early Civilizations (Cambridge UP 2011)
Awards: Max-Planck-Forschungspreis 1996; Deutscher Historikerpreis 1998. Prix Psyché 2000; Alfried Krupp Forschungspreis für Geisteswissenschaften (2006); Bundesverdienstkreuz I. Klasse (2006); Prix Européen de l’essay (2008); Thomas-Mann-Preis (2011).
The lecture will be followed by a short reception with light appetizers.
During his visit Professor Assmann will also deliver three other lectures at BU and beyond:
April 3, 2012: Joseph in Egypt: From the Bible to Thomas Mann
4-6pm
Venue: Brandeis University (Mandel Reading Room, 303 )
http://www.brandeis.edu/mandelhumanities/events/index.html
April 4, 2012: Politics, Religion and Violence: The Maccabean Wars
5 PM
Respondent: Martin Kavka (Department of Religion, Florida State University)
Moderator: Michael Zank (Department of Religion, Boston University)
Venue: Institute for Philosophy and Religion, Boston University School of Law, Barristers Hall, 765 Commonwealth Ave (first floor)
April 5, 2012: Egyptian Mysteries and Secret Societies in the Age of Enlightenment
Sponsored by the Harvard University Department of Comparative Literature
6-7:30pm
Venue: Harvard University (Harvard Hall 104)