Wilson, a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, is best known for "The Pittsburgh Cycle," a series of 10 plays about black Americans in the 20th century. A 1998 Montgomery Fellow at the College, Wilson organized a meeting about African American theater and worked on "King Hedley II," part of "The Pittsburg Cycle," during his time on campus.
Pease, like many scholars, defined the humanities as an aspiration to discover what separates humans from the natural world, which the sciences investigate, and the supernatural, the subject of theology and metaphysics. Human achievements -- like a dance by Martha Graham, a Beethoven symphony or Dante's "Divine Comedy" -- cannot be defined by natural laws, Pease said.
Society, though, sometimes belittles the arts and humanities as superfluous, recreational activities, and professors in these fields are derided, he said. Although Pease said society considers the products of the arts and humanities to be priceless, he said instruction in these fields has been devalued. This decline has resulted in a "crisis mentality" among humanists, professors of the humanities, artists and writers, Pease said.
Pease, who described the humanities as an incomplete field, said this perceived crisis could be crucial, as it encourages scholars to reflect on their own work, which can result in imaginative and innovative changes.
"Humans are capable of self-criticism and self-examination, which are needed for self-alteration," he said.
Wilson's plays reflect the supposed crisis in the humanities by criticizing the dominant form of American humanism, Pease said. The characters in Wilson's "Seven Guitars" and "King Hedley II" turn to "humanistic resources" -- different forms of artistic expression -- to address their woes, especially blues music, Pease said. Since blues singers were not valued in the United States, Wilson's inclusion of the art form in his play symbolizes his criticism of American humanism, Pease said.
"Before they could see themselves, Wilson's characters had to behold themselves through the eyes of the blues community," he said.
Wilson's characters are afflicted by problems indicative of larger social issues, including social immobility and "black-on-black violence," Pease said. Historical events, including slavery, further prevented the community in Wilson's plays from connecting with the memory of its ancestors, Pease said.
Because of this disconnect, Wilson's characters must confront problems left behind by dead ancestors, which Pease termed the "Lazarus complex." In "King Hedley II," for instance, the title character must confront the man who killed both his biological and adopted fathers.
The characters break free from the Lazarus complex through various media, including blues music and rituals. The dialogue between a blues performer and audience members, for instance, creates witnesses that engage in "self-criticism."
"An audience member becomes a witness of the truth when an audience member learns how to look at events critically," he said.
The creation of these "blues witnesses" demonstrates Wilson's willingness to alter the humanities, as all scholars should, Pease said.
During the speech, Pease noted his role as the last presidential lecturer selected by outgoing College President James Wright, and praised Wright for the increase in the number of humanities majors at the College over the last 10 years. Pease attributed the increase to the work of associate dean for the arts and humanities Kate Conley, who he said expanded the humanities division to include the arts. Pease also cited the establishment of the Leslie Center for the Humanities and the Montgomery Endowment as reasons for the increase in humanities majors.
"The Montgomery Endowment introduced a whole population of humanists to Dartmouth," Pease said. "The College, itself, became a patron of the arts and humanities of which Dartmouth students are the chief beneficiaries."
The Presidential Lecture series was established in 1987 by then-College President James Freedman. Wright has continued the series and annually selects a Dartmouth faculty member to present his or her research.
"When I became president 11 years ago, I happily embraced the opportunity to continue this tradition, which has both affirmed and enhanced academics at Dartmouth," Wright said.
Pease is the Avalon Foundation Professor of the Humanities and chair of the masters of arts in liberal studies program at Dartmouth.
