Sawyier Fellow Stephen Harris Wins SACP Award
Stephen Harris, Sawyier predoctoral fellow, was selected as this year's winner of the graduate student essay prize awarded by The Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy (SACP). Harris presented his paper, "Mahayana Ethics and the Demandingness Objection," at the society's annual conference on October 11. "My essay considered strategies available to the eighth century Buddhist monk, Śāntideva, for reducing the demandingness of committing to becoming a fully awakened Buddha for the benefit of all sentient beings," Harris said.
SACP is the largest scholarly organization dedicated to promoting the study of Asian philosophy in the academy. "The conference draws together leading scholars with research interests ranging from Buddhism, Indian religion, Japanese and Chinese philosophy, and provided an ideal opportunity to learn about new research being done in my own, and closely related, fields," Harris said.
The essay contest was co-sponsored this year by the Department of Philosophy, Southern Illinois University.
Harris is one of the most recent recipients of the Fay Sawyier Fellowship and is currently teaching at IIT while finishing his dissertation at University of New Mexico.
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