It is with a deep sense of loss that I share the news of the death of John Sallis on February 18, 2025. John was a long-standing member of SPEP and served the society in many ways. He was deeply loved by so many of his students who appreciated the clarity and depth of insight that was the hallmark of his teaching.
For the past 20 years John held the Frederick J. Adelmann Chair at Boston College. He previously held research chairs at Pennsylvania State University, Vanderbilt University, and Loyola University, Chicago. He was professor and former chair at Duquesne University where he established himself as a teacher and scholar of note, becoming one of the most prominent thinkers in contemporary continental philosophy. He lectured both here and abroad with several visiting appointments, and in 2007 he received a doctorate honoris causa from the Universität Freiburg, Germany.
Early on in his career he established the journal Research in Phenomenology, one of the leading journals in contemporary continental philosophy. He was tireless in his devotion to promoting active scholarship, offering substantial support to the Collegium Phaenomenologicum in Italy, the Simon Silverman Phenomenology Center at Duquesne University and the annual Andre Schuwer Lecture held in conjunction with SPEP.
John was the author of over 25 books. His early book, Being and Logos in the Platonic Dialogue, became a touchstone for many of his students, who became scholars in Greek philosophy in their own right. His book, Chorology: On Beginning in Plato’s Timaeus, drew the attention of both Derrida and Gadamer, both of whom enjoyed frequent conversations with John. His work in the history of philosophy saw books on Kant, German Idealism, and Nietzsche, and in contemporary philosophy he had studies on Heidegger and Merleau-Ponty. The focal point of his original work was his three books on the imagination. The third, Ethicality and Imagination is a groundbreaking work on ethical and political community. In his late work John’s attention was drawn to creative studies on art and nature. While at Boston College he curated two significant exhibitions, one on Paul Klee and the other on the contemporary Chinese painter Cao Jun. A beloved scholar and teacher, the legacy of John Sallis will live on.
—James Risser
Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Seattle University