Robert Nozick memorial service is set for March 21

Robert Nozick, Pellegrino University Professor, will be remembered at a memorial service next Thursday, March 21, 2 p.m., in the Memorial Church. A reception will follow at the Faculty Club.

Nozick, who died on Jan. 23, moved in electrifying fashion through a broad range of philosophical territory, proposing illuminating solutions to problems in every area of the subject during three decades of teaching and learning at Harvard. His work dealt with the nature of truth, objectivity, and subjectivity, and the relationship between the individual and the state, among many other topics. Remarkably accessible in his scholarly writing, and exuberant in his personal dealings, Nozick was much honored by professional and scholarly societies, and beloved by many in the Harvard community. He came to Harvard as a full professor in 1969, became Arthur Kingsley Porter Professor of Philosophy in 1985, and was named Pellegrino University Professor in 1998.

Nozick is survived by his wife, Gjertrud Schnackenberg, and his two children, Emily and David. Next week’s memorial service is open to the public.