Sarah Scott, Ph.D. Professor From Manhattan College Appointed Fellow Of The National Humanities Center
Focus of Study is on Frances Power Cobbe, British Philosopher and Women’s Rights and Animal Welfare Activist
Manhattan College announced that Sarah Scott, Ph.D. has been awarded a Fellowship to the National Humanities Center (NHC), the world’s only independent institute dedicated exclusively to advanced study in all areas of the humanities. The newly appointed Fellows constitute the 47th class of resident scholars to be admitted since the Center opened in 1978. The highly competitive group of applicants represented institutions from around the world, and this year’s class will have scholars from universities and colleges in 16 U.S. states and the District of Columbia as well as Canada, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom. NHC will award approximately $1.5million in fellowship grants to enable the selected scholars to take leave from their normal academic responsibilities and pursue research at the Center located in Research Triangle Park, NC.
Dr. Scott’s area of study is The Moral Philosophy of Frances Power Cobbe: Forgotten British Philosopher and Women’s Rights and Animal Welfare Activist. Cobbe (1822-1904) helped pass the Matrimonial Causes Act and founded the Victoria Street Society (now the National Anti-Vivisection Society) and the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (now Cruelty Free International). Dr. Scott’s research is the first in-depth analysis of Cobbe’s moral philosophy by a philosopher, engaging with Cobbe’s diverse modes of writing and analyzing her influences and ongoing relevance.
According to Dr. Scott, “This is the story of a philosopher who has been erased from history, yet whose legacy lives on every time a woman is able to divorce an abusive spouse or an animal is saved from testing. It fills a gap in the movement to correct the erasure of women philosophers; while much has been done on early modern women philosophers, little research has been done on nineteenth-century women.” She continued, “Being named a Fellow at NHC is a dream come true for an academic. I am incredibly honored to be part of the selected class of scholars.”
Dr. Scott is also the editor of Martin Buber: Creaturely Life and Social Form (Indiana University Press, 2022), and has published on the significance of Buber’s moral philosophy, Buber’s aestheticism and account of moral imagination, and Buber’s early work on Nicholas of Cusa. Beyond her work on Buber, she conducts research in ethics and the history of philosophy, especially women philosophers as well as animal ethics. Prior to her tenure at NHC, Dr. Scott will give a presentation on Cobbe at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics Summer School, University of Oxford, England to be held this August.
Said Marcy Kelly, Ph. D. and Dean of the Kakos School of Arts and Sciences at Manhattan College, “We were thrilled to hear of Sarah’s acceptance as part of the 47th class of scholars at the National Humanities Center. This is an incredible honor for both Sarah and Manhattan College.”