#14 Helgard Mahrdt | Hannah Arendt and the Double Responsibility of Educators
Our guest in this episode is Dr. Helgard Mahrdt from the Center for Gender Research at the University of Oslo. She was also Associate Professor at the Department of Literature, Area Studies, and European Languages and Visiting Professor at the University of Ljubljana. Furthermore, she served as a Senior Researcher at the Danish Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities in Copenhagen and has been affiliated with the Humaniora study group at the University of Oslo. In this episode, we explore her long-standing engagement with the political thought of Hannah Arendt, focusing on Arendt’s insights into education, judgment, and responsibility. We discuss Arendt’s concept of the educator’s double responsibility—toward both the child and the world—and what it means to teach in an era marked by alienation, expropriation, and the breakdown of tradition. We also reflect on the role of thinking, remembering, and public discourse in shaping democratic life, and on how educators and universities must respond to rising authoritarian pressures.
00:21:19 – Do universities have a political responsibility?
Between Theory and Practice – Questions for Reflection:
Between Theory and Practice – Questions for Reflection:
How might the insights from this dialogue inspire your own practice? The following questions are intended to inspire further inquiry, whether explored individually or in conversation with colleagues, students, or peers.
- Arendt argues that we are responsible not only for ourselves, but also for the world we share with others and pass on to future generations. When you consider your own professional practice, what aspects of this shared world do you feel particularly responsible for preserving, renewing, or transforming?
- Helgard Mahrdt highlights Arendt’s view that responsible action depends on our capacity to think, remember, and judge. Think of a current challenge or controversy in your professional context. How might taking time to reflect more carefully—rather than reacting immediately—help you arrive at a more thoughtful and responsible response?
Literature:
- Arendt, H. (2017): The Origins of Totalitarianism. London: Penguin Books.
- Arendt, H. (2018): The Human Condition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
- Arendt, H. (2022): Eichmann in Jerusalem. London: Penguin Books.
- Arendt, H. (2006): On Revolution. London: Penguin Books.
- Mahrdt, H. (in progress) Hannah Arendt – to be at home in the world. Vidar Forlag: Oslo.
- Mahrdt, H. (2022): Responding to wrong-doing. Ethics and Education. ISSN 1744-9642. 17(2), p. 197–210. doi: 10.1080/17449642.2022.2054541.
- Mahrdt, H. (2018): Arendt and the notion of plurality, In: Filosofisk supplement.
- Mahrdt, H. (2015): Refugees and Europe: a dilemma or a turning point. In: Studier i Pedagogisk Filosofi. Vol. 4. No. 2.
- Mahrdt, H. (2012): Hannah Arendt: Self-disclosure, Worldliness and plurality. Journal of the British Society for Phenomenology. Vol 43. No.3. (pp.250-263).
