By Anita Pappas-Raposa
The day I began to sort out and discard Andy’s notes was a heartstopper. into the basement I went, recycling bin in hand and began to sift through drawers, years of yellow legal pads, large, lined index cards, typed manuscripts, journals and bound essays. They were undisturbed, handwritten years of research all compiled into neat, ordered topics like “progressive democracy” “a history of Edmund Burke” and “Islamabad.” More recent drafts of pieces for Counterpunch and Atticus Review; online journals, from the last few years were there too. The essays “Trump Agonistes” and “Why Marx Matters” were provocative and current publications completed before he stopped writing in 2021.
No-one wants these drafts, but they moved with us several times “just in case” he needed them for reference. As I browsed through the handwritten class notes, I saw that some were relevant to the war in the Middle East. Some were tributes to scientists, historians, or activists. Some were praising little- remembered individuals or causes that did not shake the world but occupied the mind of the scholar.
This is the stuff that deeply motivates philosophy; this is writing that will never be measured by financial or capitalistic gain. It is a complex meshing of mostly radical ideas combined with pragmatism which motivates and generates theory. It is a world that rests in libraries or maybe in carboard boxes. It also represents what one was truly dedicated to sharing; it is an academic world. While this work may have not changed the larger view, Andrew shaped and influenced the thinking of students for decades. He taught young men and women to consider alternative ways of thinking, to probe deeper than their texts to initiate action where they could in their communities or classrooms.
He reluctantly acceded to the notion that philosophy can’t always translate to action. Understanding the genuine from the superficial and fleshing out deep thought as opposed to accepting passing fancy is always important work. This is what I see as I read the notes that made his teaching come alive.
Anita Pappas-Raposa is a nonfiction writer, retired English teacher, and Museum School student. She previously published memoir in The Springfield Republican, The Palmer Journal and WriteAngles Journal. She recently completed “Before and After,” a series of reflections and poems chronicling the year following the loss of her husband, Andrew.