A World of Good
Posted on December 7, 2021
Dr. Samuel Baker, an associate professor of philosophy at the University of South
Alabama, is on sabbatical at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton.
While on sabbatical at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, where he鈥檚 writing a book about Aristotle, Dr. Samuel Baker likes to get an early start on his writing and research.
He often rises at 4:30 a.m. to continue his work on the concept of truth as a good in Nicomachean Ethics.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a good thing to do, first thing,鈥� said Baker, an associate professor of philosophy at the University of South Alabama. 鈥淚f the world falls apart in the rest of the day, at least you鈥檝e got a little bit of work done.鈥�
On Tuesday mornings, he travels to Manhattan for a philosophy seminar at New York University. He enjoys visiting the city, but doesn鈥檛 have much time. On Tuesday evenings, he returns to Princeton for a classical Greek reading group.
Baker has had papers published in journals such as Apeiron, Philosophical Studies and Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy. His scholarship has focused on Aristotle鈥檚 definition of happiness, along with the 鈥渆rgon argument鈥� by which Aristotle arrives at that definition.
鈥淩ight now I am thinking about the way Aristotle conceives of the mind,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淎ristotle claims that the intellect also has a proper ergon, has a proper work, and that ergon is truth, which sounds a little puzzling. I鈥檓 sort of unpacking that claim and explaining the passages that surround it.
鈥淚 argue for an interpretation that may sound a little surprising, but Aristotle believes, I think, in degrees of truth. The central idea is that when one truth causes another truth to be true, the first truth, the cause, is truer than the second. The task is then to build a system where you can arrive at these highest truths. So the pursuit of truth is leading you to these first principles, the causes of all other truths. That鈥檚 kind of the picture.鈥�
If Baker had a working title for his book, he says it might be 鈥淎ristotle on Truth as the Good of the Intellect.鈥�
This fall, he is a member at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton. In the spring, he will continue his research thanks to a Loeb Classical Library Foundation Fellowship from Harvard University Press.
Dr. Kevin Meeker, chair of the department of philosophy at South, wasn鈥檛 surprised that Baker won such prestigious fellowships.
鈥淗e鈥檚 done a lot of groundbreaking work in understanding some of Aristotle鈥檚 arguments,鈥� Meeker said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 provided a fresh way of looking at ideas that have been around for a very long time. That鈥檚 a very unusual thing. He鈥檚 convinced a lot of people and it鈥檚 very difficult to convince people of a new reading for an ancient text.鈥�
At the University of Chicago, Dr. Gabriel Richardson Lear is a mentor and colleague who has visited Baker鈥檚 classes in Mobile.
鈥淪amuel was one of the first undergraduates I taught and I well remember his enthusiastic, penetrating questions,鈥� Lear said. 鈥淥ne of the great joys of my life is that I now routinely assign Samuel鈥檚 papers to my students at the University of Chicago. His interpretation of what Aristotle means by saying that our highest human good is the virtuous fulfillment of our characteristic human 鈥榳ork鈥� is the best I know: clear, subtle, precise and just plain right.鈥�
Dr. Patricio Fernandez, a philosophy professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, is a colleague who is writing a journal article with Baker.
鈥淪amuel is an acute reader of ancient texts in general and Aristotle in particular,鈥� Fernandez said. 鈥淗e is clearly convinced that Aristotle鈥檚 works, particularly his Ethics, are not only of historical interest, but are also of great value for our present moment. I鈥檓 struck by how meticulous he is and sensitive to how far any given philosophical reading of a text can be taken while remaining faithful to the text鈥檚 letter. Several times he has stopped me from taking some of my own readings too far.鈥�
At South, Baker teaches philosophy along with classical languages such as Latin and ancient Greek. It鈥檚 an unusual schedule that fits his research, which includes close reading of untranslated texts.
He鈥檚 grateful for seed grants from the Office of Research and Development at South. One allowed him to participate in an advanced seminar, working with other professors in spoken ancient Greek.
鈥淚t sounds so useless, but in fact it鈥檚 very hard, when you鈥檙e reading an ancient language, to be as comfortable readi