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Tanner Humanities
Center Events


Our events and programs bring together campus and community members in conversation about important contemporary public concerns and scholarship. We feature artists, writers, scholars, and public figures in a broad range of talks, colloquia, and discussions. We offer a platform to discuss the most innovative research by University of Utah faculty and students.

Our speakers are chosen by the Tanner Humanities Center staff in consultation with the Tanner Faculty Board and other members of our communities both on and off campus. In addition to our own programming, we regularly partner with Departments, Centers, and local organizations to support Humanities-oriented events of interest to all of our communities in the greater Salt Lake City area and throughout Utah. Please get in touch with Scott Black (scott.black@utah.edu) or Beth James (beth.james@utah.edu) with any recommendations.

The Water Commons: Living Legacies of Utah Waterways

The Water Commons: Living Legacies of Utah Waterways

September 19, 2025
Co-hosted with Environmental Humanities and the American West Center, and the School of Environment, Society and Sustainability. In collaboration with: Humanities Institute, Arizona State University...
Daniel Mendelsohn

Daniel Mendelsohn

Tanner Talks and Conversations
September 24, 2025
Daniel Mendelsohn will discuss his acclaimed new translation of Homer’s Odyssey, published in April 2025 by the University of Chicago Press. His talk will be...
An Evening with Great Books

An Evening with Great Books

October 16, 2025
Complete program with time, venue, and ticket information will be available in August, 2025. For updates and announcements, join our mailing list by emailing beth.james@utah.edu
Jesmyn Ward – Gardner Lecture in Humanities and Fine Arts

Jesmyn Ward – Gardner Lecture in Humanities and Fine Arts

David P. Gardner Lecture in Humanities and Fine Arts
October 23, 2025
Author of Let Us Descend and Sing Unburied Sing Full event details, including ticket information, will be available in August, 2025. For updates and announcements,...
Cindi Textor

Cindi Textor

Tanner Talks and Conversations
November 13, 2025
Associate Professor, Department of World Languages and Cultures, author of Intersectional Incoherence: Zainichi Literature and the Ethics of Illegibility Full event details, including ticket information,...
Fr. Gregory Boyle – McMurrin Lecture on Religion and Culture

Fr. Gregory Boyle – McMurrin Lecture on Religion and Culture

Sterling M. McMurrin Lecture on Religion and Culture
January 21, 2026
Founder and Executive Director of the gang intervention and rehabilitation program, Homeboy Industries Full event details, including ticket information, will be available in August, 2025....
Cory Doctorow

Cory Doctorow

Tanner Talks and Conversations
February 18, 2026
Science fiction novelist and technology journalist, author of The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation Full event details, including ticket information, will...
David Wengrow, “The Elementary Forms of Human Freedom”

David Wengrow, “The Elementary Forms of Human Freedom”

Tanner Lecture on Human Values
March 24, 2026
Archeologist and author with David Graeber of The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity Full event details, including ticket information, will be available...
Joseph Metz

Joseph Metz

Tanner Talks and Conversations
March 31, 2026
Associate Professor, Department of World Languages and Cultures, author of The Feeling of the Form: Empathy and Aesthetics from Büchner to Rilke Full event details,...

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