Spring Break
Things I've learned: Professor David
Issue date: 4/26/07
- Page 1 of 3 next >
Professor Steven David sat in his office in a checkered shirt and khakis, listening to the cuckoo clock on his wall tweet out the next hour. The wind blustered outside, but inside it was sunny and warm as the professor of contemporary international politics talked about his roots, his inspirations and his career.
"I grew up in the south Bronx," David began, his hands on his knees. "You learn a lot about life there. You learn about anarchy, the use of force, the futility of appeasement, and the rottenness of human nature: all important things in realism."
"I went to an all-boys public school, with 7,000 boys. It was a pretty tough place, an inner city school. For a while we had the distinction of having the most graduates in the NBA. As you can probably guess, I was not one of those."
"A great majority of the students not only did not go on to college, they did not graduate. The school convinced me about the importance of family. I come from a Jewish background, and education was always understood as something you pursued. Even more important than the school you go to are the attitudes, values and environment you get at home."
David's father worked in the garment industry, while his mother was a housewife. He has two sisters, one of whom married a doctor and the other a dentist. "I'm the failure in the family, having a Ph.D., because I never made it to med school," he joked.
David's interest in political science blossomed at an early age. "I grew up during the Cold War, and I was always curious about America's role in the world, and the threat posed by the Soviet Union. I was also affected by reading about the Holocaust. It fascinated me that so-called civilized people could kill so many just because of their religion or ethnicity. The Holocaust indicated that, my gosh, there's a lot of hatred and anger in people. It convinced me about the capacity of evil in human kind, and the necessity to be strong to be able to counter that hatred when it's necessary."
"I grew up in the south Bronx," David began, his hands on his knees. "You learn a lot about life there. You learn about anarchy, the use of force, the futility of appeasement, and the rottenness of human nature: all important things in realism."
"I went to an all-boys public school, with 7,000 boys. It was a pretty tough place, an inner city school. For a while we had the distinction of having the most graduates in the NBA. As you can probably guess, I was not one of those."
"A great majority of the students not only did not go on to college, they did not graduate. The school convinced me about the importance of family. I come from a Jewish background, and education was always understood as something you pursued. Even more important than the school you go to are the attitudes, values and environment you get at home."
David's father worked in the garment industry, while his mother was a housewife. He has two sisters, one of whom married a doctor and the other a dentist. "I'm the failure in the family, having a Ph.D., because I never made it to med school," he joked.
David's interest in political science blossomed at an early age. "I grew up during the Cold War, and I was always curious about America's role in the world, and the threat posed by the Soviet Union. I was also affected by reading about the Holocaust. It fascinated me that so-called civilized people could kill so many just because of their religion or ethnicity. The Holocaust indicated that, my gosh, there's a lot of hatred and anger in people. It convinced me about the capacity of evil in human kind, and the necessity to be strong to be able to counter that hatred when it's necessary."
Be the first to comment on this story