Comments on: Her mentor retires, and Caitrin Lynch ’89 reflects on Steve Kemper’s lessons of equity and justice

By: John Rogers

John Rogers — Sun, 09 Feb 2020 03:21:00 +0000

In reply to Stephen Hughes. I'm John Rogers '76, and went on Steve's first short term to South Asia (1976). I met Steve Hughes in London in 1983, when Steve's and his short term students broke their trip for a day. In 1976, a group of 6 students went with Steve to Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Nepal, on a very low budget. Like Steve Hughes's trip, university administrators today would go crazy to hear about it. I remember in particular being absolutely packed (unable to keep feet on the floor) in a third class rail car from Delhi to Agra. And we took a normal bus through the Khyber Pass from Kabul to Peshawar, where we hung around the train station and then took an overnight train (no reserved seats) to Lahore. It was different world. Like Caitrin, it was through Steve's influence that I later took up the study of Sri Lanka in graduate school, though in History rather than Anthropology. Unfortunately, I was out of the country for Steve's retirement party last spring, but was able to organize a round table on Steve's latest book at the Annual Conference on South Asia in Madison WI in October. That was 44 years after I took my first course with Steve, "Anthropological Approaches to the Study of Religion"! Thanks Caitrin for doing this article.

By: Egret

Egret — Wed, 22 Jan 2020 02:28:00 +0000

In reply to Caitrin Lynch. Thanks for responding, Caitrin! Your help made a huge difference for me in bio.

By: Caitrin Lynch

Caitrin Lynch — Wed, 22 Jan 2020 00:28:00 +0000

In reply to Stephen Hughes. Hi Steve Hughes (as opposed to Kemper)- Love all this. Love the stories of short term! Many of my best �ֲ��ý memories are from short terms. "He showed us how to confront the limits of our ethnocentrism and embrace cultural diversity." Yes. We need more of that in the world.

By: Caitrin Lynch

Caitrin Lynch — Wed, 22 Jan 2020 00:24:00 +0000

In reply to Egret. Hi Sue, Thanks so much, this is so kind. I remember you in bio, and I didn't know that you took a course from Steve. That's so great! It's great to hear from you.

By: Egret

Egret — Tue, 21 Jan 2020 19:22:00 +0000

In reply to Egret. Forgot to identify myself - Sue Hubley ‘90

By: Egret

Egret — Tue, 21 Jan 2020 19:20:00 +0000

This is a great article! Caitrin, you were my biology TA in 1988-89, and you helped me a great deal. I think I may have mentioned this to you before, but I was an older student and very, very unsure of myself in lab, and you were just wonderful. I took just one of Steve’s courses because I had very few electives (I needed to get many of my requirements into two years). Steve’s course was actually my only elective. I loved it, learned so much, and gained a much deeper understanding of South Asia. It still informs my perspective. Thank you, Caitrin and Steve.

By: Stephen Hughes

Stephen Hughes — Sat, 18 Jan 2020 14:16:00 +0000

I was not able to join in the retirement party last spring to express my own thanks for Steve’s teaching at �ֲ��ý (45 years!!). So I am especially appreciative to Caitrin for writing this article. It chimes so much with my experience as Steve’s student in the early 1980s. His teaching and mentorship effectively grabbed me by my scruffy neck and set me on my path to become an anthropologist. I took his Symbolic Anthropology class as a 19-year-old and left with a new found conviction for the subject. In 1983 I was one of five students whom Steve led on an epic 6-week adventure to India, Myanmar (then still “Burma”) and Nepal. He showed us how to confront the limits of our ethnocentrism and embrace cultural diversity. Perhaps more than anything else, it was this short term course that was both my most life-changing experience and helped to make anthropology my way of life. This was no five star luxury trip. Don’t tell the �ֲ��ý College administrators this, but we travelled with no seats in third class rail cars on the way to Calcutta and black market taxis throughout Burma in order to avoid military checkpoints. We spent nights on the floors of Buddhist temples. We trekked in Nepal. I learned important lessons about the calling of anthropology from Steve’s example. As Caitrin puts it above, the anthropology that Steve taught us was the work of “making sense of how we live in the world, what matters most for people, and why”. And hopefully this helps make the world a better place along the way. I owe Steve such a debt of gratitude for setting me on my way to become an anthropologist and teacher. And, Steve: I am sure that I have never really taken the opportunity to give you the “thank you” that you deserve.