Professor relates philosophy with heavy metal

Apr 06, 2016
Chris Fox

Newman University Associate Professor of Philosophy Chris Fox, Ph.D. can easily be spotted on campus with his signature style: loud shirts, curly long hair, and trendy glasses. Students and friends of Chris would tell you that his appearance is a reflection of his vocal demeanor and lifestyle.

On Apr. 1, Wichita’s KMUW Radio caught up with Chris to talk about the similarities of his work as a philosopher and as a bass player in a heavy metal band.

Chris Fox is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Newman University in Wichita. He grew up in the Seattle music scene of the 1980s and 1990s, recording with the band Bitter End and, later, in Memphis with The Also. He has toured with former Queensryche vocalist Geoff Tate and continues to play bass when he can.

“I do academic philosophy. I do western philosophy. I do the history of philosophy. So I’m a generalist—in some ways. I specialize. The stuff I publish on has to be narrow for a very small audience. But for me to understand the stuff I do philosophically, I have to be able to talk about the whole history of philosophy from the pre-Socratics through the post-postmoderns. And in a way that’s like being a bass player because you have to be a jack of all trades and you have to be able to see the whole and to know your part in the whole but not lose sight of the whole while doing your part.

Read the story on KMUW and listen to the radio clip

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