6:00 PM Susan Neiman

Courage and Convictions
Practicing Judgment
International Conference
It will also be broadcast live on Zoom. To watch online, please register here:
– Thursday, June 26, 6:00 p.m. – 7.30 p.m.
– Friday, June 27, 10:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
– Saturday, June 28, 10:00 a.m. – 6:15 p.m.
Conception: Susan Neiman, Potsdam, and Lorraine Daston, Berlin
With Ulrich Baer, New York; Avraham Burg, Jerusalem; Peter Galison, Cambridge/Mass.; Konstanty Gebert, Warsaw; Jennifer Homans, New York; Peter Kramer, Providence; Albie Sachs, Cape Town; Nahed Samour, Nijmegen; Judith Simon, Hamburg; Bettina Stangneth, Hamburg; Sean Wilentz, Princeton; Thomas Chatterton Williams, Paris; James Wood, Cambridge, Mass.
What is good judgment, and how is it distinct from intelligence? What distinguishes it from opinions, gut feelings, and personal truths? Since judgment is necessarily particular, the question must be considered in different spheres. How does a judge decide a case? How do literary and art and theatre critics make their judgments? How, for that matter, does an artist, a writer, or a director make judgments in creating the work itself? How does a doctor or a psychiatrist decide on a treatment? How does an umpire determine a foul? It is indeed impossible to avoid political questions about what (mis)judgments went into the most recent political disasters. What role does courage play in making a judgment? And what happens to our character when we are no longer called upon to exercise judgment? An international lineup of speakers who make their livings making judgments will explore these questions and more.
Program
Jun 27, 2025
10:30 AM James Wood
Reflections on the Practice of Literary Criticism
11:45 AM Jennifer Homans
Judging Ghosts: Reflections on Dance Criticism
12:45 PM
Lunch Break
2:30 PM Thomas Chatterton Williams
Is It Racist?
4:15 PM Ulrich Baer
Great Books Banned: Aesthetic and Legal Judgments
5:30 PM Peter Kramer
What Else We Know: The Role of Judgment in the Conduct of Psychotherapy
Jun 28, 2025
10:00 AM Bettina Stangneth
Judgment: The Willful Step in Heraclitus’ River. Thinking and Time—Movement 1
11:15 AM Judith Simon
Knowing, Thinking, and Being with Artificial Intelligence
12:30 PM Peter Galison
AI Has No Judgment
1:30 PM
Lunch Break
3:30 PM Avrum Burg, Konstanty Gebert, Nahed Samour
Judging Israel: Why It Matters
5:15 PM Sean Wilentz
Historic Historical Misjudgment
The event will be held in English