At the moment he's talking about predestination's incompatibility with free will, his lectures on Kant, the philosophy of technology, his love of teaching metaphysics.

In his voice and manners is the cultivated civility of an Amherst graduate who traveled to Europe while young and grew up in a well-off world with every educational advantage.

But the boots send a different message. They are cowboy boots: straightforward, brown, a scuff here and there, well-worn and well-loved. It's the footwear of a man who fixes fence, rides horses and at one time raised pigs for a little extra household income on his ranch outside of Livingston.

In 35 years of teaching philosophy at Montana State University, Brittan has always had his feet planted firmly in a love of the state and its people. His retirement this spring leaves behind some impressive footprints.

Brittan came to MSU in 1973. At the time he was teaching at the University of CaliforniaÐIrvine. Having earned his doctorate at Stanford under Donald Davidson -- widely considered one of the most influential philosophers of the 20th century -- Brittan was poised to enter the highest ranks of his profession.

But California did not feel like home. Already drugs were in the schools where Brittan and his wife, Vanessa, sent their two children. The couple longed for the beauty of Montana, a place where they had vacationed often with Brittan's parents. Brittan's father, an electronic manufacturer and businessman from Chicago, had bought a ranch outside of Livingston with two other couples.

"When I said I was moving onto a ranch in Montana, my friends at Irvine thought I was crazy," Brittan said. "I was really unsure about the move, too, but my wife was certain this was a good thing."

From the first, Brittan's experience teaching at MSU only reinforced the sense that his wife knew what was best.

"When I taught in California, I had a lot of very affluent kids and I found I had to compete for their attention," Brittan said. "Here I had their attention. Man, I mean wow! They couldn't believe it -- Plato, Aristotle, Socrates -- they loved it, the whole thing. It was a new world to them. There was an excitement when I walked into the classroom that I didn't get in Irvine."

The students and Brittan's peers responded in kind. Brittan won almost every major teaching and research award the university system offers. In 1985, he was named the first Regents Professor, which honors those recognized nationally and internationally in their field. The award has been bestowed on only three other MSU professors: paleontologist Jack Horner, physicist John Carlsten and chemist/biochemist Paul Grieco.

"He was my first connection to the world of the philosophy of science," said Peter Kosso, who attended Brittan's lectures as a physics graduate student. Kosso went on to earn a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Minnesota and now teaches at Northern Arizona University. He is the author of four books.

"I remember him as an inspiring teacher with a rich know-ledge of history, science and philosophy," Kosso said. "He got me started on what has turned out to be very rewarding career."

Return to regular view	Text-only              Email this article	Published: 5/2/2008