Trinity College and the moral evaluation of historical figures

Sir, – I read with interest the revelation that a college committee decided not to allow a bust of Simone de Beauvoir in the Old Library at Trinity College despite the popularity of such a proposal amongst staff and students (“Simone de Beauvoir dropped from TCD statue plan”, News, April 29th).

Should we conclude that, as with the “denaming” of the Berkeley Library, this decision was taken on behalf of the college community and not by the majority of the college community?

Was the collective opinion of the fellows, for example, sought? With the reduced representation of academic opinion on the college board as a result of the recently passed Higher Education Act, should we expect more executive decision-making of this sort – that is, by select committees whose members consider themselves the moral voice of the university?

As the cases of Berkeley and de Beauvoir suggest, we are clearly in a phase when the traditional identity and role of the university in society (to promote critical thinking and robust and objective debate) is under transformation, for better or for worse.

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In the current climate I commend the position of non-TCD historians such as Nicholas Canny and Diarmaid Ferriter who have highlighted the problematic nature of moral evaluation of historical figures such as Berkeley. Where do we draw the line? Who is next?

One might hope that those governing the universities would put as much energy into devising policies to improve the learning and research environment and lobbying the Government for increased funding so we might finally tackle the issues of survival facing the sector, notably the arts and humanities. – Yours, etc,

Dr SARAH ALYN STACEY,

Head of the Department of French,

Trinity College Dublin.

Sir, – Where will this all end? We all know that practices, attitudes and ideas of yesteryear may well be anathema to 2023 minds. To start apologising for the sins of the past, knocking down statues, renaming buildings, beating one’s breast for the wars and conflicts of the past, it’s plainly bonkers.

What are we going to hear about next? That former provosts weren’t sufficiently Irish and their names expunged from the record ? – Yours, etc,

ALASTAIR CONAN,

Coulsdon,

UK.