Word: hoffmann
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...Hoffmann will infuse these planned works with his own concepts of political science, which aren't concerned so much with "statistics, quantitative analysis, abstracting politics from political issues, and working with 'systems' rather than the people in them," he says. "I will limit myself to studying concrete politics, and extracting generalization based on them...
Again in Cambridge, Hoffmann resumed his position as assistant in Bundy's foreign relations course. Since then, he has proved himself an innovative leader in matters of curriculum. In 1960, together with Bundy, who by this time was Dean of the College, Hoffmann established the Social Studies program. He is still chairman of the department, which offers an interdisciplinary persective on the social sciences. And in 1962, as the peace issue began emerging at Harvard, Hoffmann first taught his course...
...Hoffmann's preference for a humanistic approach to political science harmonizes well with other facets of his personality. He seems genuinely excited by fellow scholars, Harvard undergraduates, and his friends, such as Bundy, despite his stance on the war, and French sociologist Raymond Aron ("the two most brilliant men I know"). He likes music, though he can't make any. "I don't see why I should play an instrument badly when I can listen to someone else do it well, so I have a very good record collection...
Married since 1963, Hoffmann lives with his wife in a rented home near Radcliffe. He appears fairly content with Harvard, although he permits himself one general disgruntlement. "The thing I miss here is beauty," he says. "There are too many buildings in Cambridge, and the weather is abominable. Since my youth in France, I've come to expect a warm ocean as a natural right, and I think no one has an excuse for living in New England. We professors who enjoy Mediterranean landscapes--and there are many of us--should petition Harvard to buy us a farm in southern...
Having expressed his complaint, Hoffmann settled down in his chair, stuck the paper clip back in his mouth, and his voice returned to a somewhat nervous, reflective timbre. His behavior changed so because I had asked a more serious question, and as before, he was having trouble talking about himself...