Hey Professor: Sabbaticals

We know it’s hard to believe, but your professors actually have lives—and academic careers—beyond that 10 a.m. lecture. This fall, a number of Harvard’s faculty members will be going on sabbatical to write books, conduct research, and take a breath outside the Harvard bubble. FM spoke with a few to find out their plans:

Professor Andrew Warren, John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Humanities

This fall, Warren will be doing what all English professors do best: writing, writing, and writing some more. He’s got several projects in progress, ranging from an article on the use of plot in 1790’s Gothic novels to one on David Foster Wallace’s relationship with MFA programs. This still isn’t enough for Warren, however—he’ll also be plugging away at his second book, which focuses on the concept of entanglement in Romantic authors’ work.

“Research leaves are a fantastic opportunity to synthesize ideas produced in teaching and giving talks,” he says. “On a leave, you can really get into a rhythm where you can give shape to those ideas.”

Professor Paul Y. Chang, Assistant Professor of Sociology

Chang’s research focuses on South Korean social and political change, so—surprise, surprise—he’ll be heading to South Korea next fall to collect data.

“Right now I have nothing to write on,” he admits. “Usually when you’re in the final stages [of a research project] and writing, it’s better to stay in the office. In the beginning stages, if your data collection needs are such that you need to be outside, a sabbatical’s a great time to do that.”

Chang plans to collect data from the citizens of Seoul, conducting interviews and garnering quantitative data about South Korea’s changing economic structure. Although he speculates that the project will begin as a series of articles, culminating in a longer narrative-form book, he also acknowledges that he’s still in the process of organizing his thoughts and choosing what direction to pursue.

“One good goal for a sabbatical is to clear out all the clutter and focus,” he says.

Professor Paul J. Kosmin, Assistant Professor of the Classics

For his sabbatical, Kosmin is going full Indiana Jones. After delving into the archives at the University of Oxford, he plans to conduct a series of research trips in the Middle East and Asia Minor. His goal: to investigate the emergence of linear time, or in his words, “time which is represented by a number, and just a number,” in the ancient Hellenistic world. Kosmin’s thesis is that the imposition of this “rational, disenchanted time” upon indigenous peoples resulted in the emergence of apocalyptic and messianic religious movements in the 1st century BCE.

As ambitious as all this might sound, Kosmin’s research comes from humble beginnings. He plans to focus his studies on bureaucratic records—basically, ancient tax forms. To find these, he’ll visit sites in Northern Israel and Turkey, although he plans to steer clear of the ones in Iraq. Once he’s wrapped up his archaeological adventures, he plans to spend the spring semester back in the United States, at Harvard’s Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington, D.C.

Apart from trotting the globe hunting for 2,000-year-old tax forms, Kosmin also has personal plans during his time in the United Kingdom. He’ll be catching up with family, getting married, and “[taking] a step back and doing some thinking.” Until the next flight to Turkey leaves, that is.