Christia Mercer is an American Academy in Rome Scholar in Residence and the Gustave M. Berne Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University.
What part of the United States did you come from?
I’ve lived in New York City and worked at Columbia University for twenty-two years, although I grew up in central Texas.
Describe a particularly inspiring moment or location you've experienced in Rome thus far.
I’ve come to love the nooks and crannies of the American Academy and the Gianicolo, especially the gardens of the Villa Doria Pamphili, the Tempietto, the jewels in Sant’Onofrio, and the views of Rome and Saint Peter’s. But the little pieces of the past scattered around the Academy are also a joy. However wonderful the labyrinthine beauty of Rome is, it’s awfully easy to work and enjoy these little pleasures up here.
To what extent, if any, has your work changed since your arrival?
My work has changed in several ways. Mealtime discussions have sometimes left me dizzy with new questions and perspectives. I’ve found the younger fellows’ enthusiasm and freshness contagious. My own work has been enlivened as a consequence. Kim Bowes’ fabulous walking tours and Karl Kirchwey’s wonderful Ovid Conference have also been a source of new imaginings. As I’ve said to both Kim and Karl, “I’ve had thoughts!” Also, meandering around the library on a quiet Sunday afternoon has been a complete revelation at times. I want my work in the history of philosophy to be as contextually broad as it can be while remaining philosophical. I’ve found the library’s massive collection of art historical materials especially inspirational. Fellows like to say that the library is haunted. When I’m there on my own, I’m always hoping to have a chance to ask the ghost a thing or two. That would be another form of inspiration.
Have you had any "eureka!" moments or unanticipated breakthroughs in the course of your work here?
I’m working on different forms of Platonism in early modern thought and right now finishing a book on the philosophy of a seventeenth-century English Platonist, Anne Conway. One of Conway’s most profound questions concerns how particular moments of suffering in life can lead to moral growth and insights about the nature of reality. Although I had noticed the World War I memorial in the Cortile, I had a eureka moment last week when I realized the striking way it treats that question, while referring to Classical literature, art, the Academy, all in its Art Deco mode. The inscription reads: “Man with his Burning Soul has but an Hour of Breath to build a Ship of Truth in which his Soul may sail, sail on the Sea of Death, for Death takes its toll of Beauty, Courage, Youth, of all but Truth.”
What aspect of your work are you most looking forward to?
I’ve begun to explore some of the art-historical expressions of Platonist doctrines, and I’m looking forward to discovering more.
What part of your project has been or do you anticipate will be the most challenging?
Anne Conway’s philosophy, like that of most seventeenth-century women philosophers, disappeared in the eighteenth century. So, there is virtually no scholarly help in deciphering her thought. Her work has to be interpreted ex nihilo. Because she engages with all the major ideas of seventeenth-century philosophy, it is very difficult to situate her ideas properly. My greatest challenge now is just doing that well.
What's surprised you most about living in Rome?
What surprises me most about living in Rome is how much work I’m able to do at the AAR, despite the temptations of Rome and the Academy itself!
How have you managed the balance between your work (time in the studio/study) and engagement with Rome and Italy (travel, sightseeing, interactions with locals)?
In unexpected ways, I have found a balance. I’ve lived in Rome before and traveled in Italy and that probably lessens the frustration of spending so much time on the Gianicolo. I’m tempted to spend more time traveling, but I have felt fairly comfortable focusing on my work. Full disclosure: my sons will visit next week and we’ll travel to Sicily!
How do you anticipate your time at the Academy will influence future work?
Rome and the Academy have combined to convince me to use more art historical materials in my work on early modern philosophy.
What is your favorite spot at the Academy? or in Rome?
That changes by the hour and the light. Yesterday, I found the view from the fourth-floor terrace particularly beautiful. The air was crystal clear so all of Rome and the mountains beyond were especially vivid.