Search

Born on November 12, 1920, George Nakhnikian joined the Indiana University faculty as a member of the Philosophy Department in 1968 and served there until his retirement in 1988. In this interview, he recalls his childhood as an Armenian in Bulgaria and his immigration to the United States. Nakhnikian also discusses his participation in World War II, his use of the GI Bill to complete graduate school and his quick rise to chairmanship of the Department of Philosophy at Wayne State University. In addition, he recalls his undergraduate years at Harvard University and his coming to the Indiana University Department of Philosophy. Nakhnikian discusses departmental tensions, his years as chair, and the growth of the department.

Henry H. H. Remak, born on July 27, 1916, discusses his family background and youth in Germany, his education, his long association with Indiana University and recalls much of the university's history from the years spanning 1936 through 1996. A long-time faculty member, Remak discusses his career in languages, particularly German and French, and speaks of the German Department and the Institute for Advanced Study. Dr. Remak comments on the beauty of the Indiana University campus, the social anti-Semitism he experienced in the United States, the effects of World War II on enrollment in the German Department, and German Americans and culture in America. In addition, he speaks of teaching, especially in the context of the Cold War, McCarthyism, and the Vietnam War and the unrest of the nineteen sixties. Professor Remak shares anecdotes about two of the most well-known figures in the history of Indiana University, Herman B Wells and Alfred Kinsey, and he speaks of the increased and misplaced emphasis on academic specialization, the teaching vs. research debate, and faculty tenure.