Suleiman Is Awarded Dillon Professorship

Susan R. Suleiman, professor of romance and comparative literatures, this week was named C. Douglas Dillon Professor of the Civilization of France.

Suleiman, who has taught at the University since 1981, will replace Stanley H. Hoffman, who resigned from the post in January to accept a University professorship.

The Dillon chair entails--as its name implies--teaching and research on French civilization.

"It's a wonderful choice," Hoffman said. "She's particularly fitted for it because of her interest in contemporary French literature and also in...very important cultural issues in France."

Hoffman praised Suleiman's work on many post-war French authors including the likes of de Beauvoir and Sartre, calling her a "highly original and very competent teacher and writer with a very broad scope."

Suleiman said she was "delighted" to accept the chair.

"The idea is both daunting and exciting," she said.

She has written several books, including "Risking Who One Is: Encounters with Contemporary Art and Literature," and "Subversive Intent: Gender, Politics, and the Avant-Garde."

Her published poetry and autobiographical work includes "Budapest Diary: In Search of the Motherbook."

Suleiman, who chaired the Committee on Women's Studies from 1984-87, oversaw the creation of Harvard's first undergraduate degree program in women's studies.

A native of Budapest, Suleiman fled Hungary at the age of ten to escape the Communist regime. In 1984 she returned to the city for the first time with her children.

The Faculty established the Dillon Professorship in 1957 with a gift from Clarence Dillon '05, in honor of his son, Clarence Douglas Dillon '31, who had just completed four years as U.S. Ambassador to France.