Mission Statement

Since 1987 The Humanities Institute at Stony Brook has been supporting and showcasing the work of those who explore the nature of human experience, whether through academic research or artistic expression. Such exploration may be philosophical, philological, historical, musical, literary, theatrical, cinematic, political or scientific, or something in between and amongst many such domains, but they all aim to take part in an ongoing dialogue about who and what we are; how and why we make shared knowledge; who might be included and excluded from it; and what we ought, and ought not, to do with it. The Institute is a place for us all to take part in these dialogues as a community. 

The humanities have a long history of producing new and preserving old knowledge through scholarly research within its disciplinary branches. The humanities also unite those specialized disciplines with the overall mission of the university – and with the broad public interest – by cultivating critical thinking, cultural awareness, a sense of historical responsibility, and a theory and practice of democratic citizenship. The Humanities Institute at Stony Brook is a place to find some of the best research, theory, criticism, and art that the humanities has to offer. 

In the midst of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the Institute will aim to facilitate a much-needed return to our face-to-face communal activities while also making the most of the technological affordances we’ve adopted since the pandemic began, in order to ensure that everyone is invited to be part of our programming.