National Humanities Center's video: William Bro Adams Coming to Terms with the Experience of War

Former NEH Chairman William “Bro” Adams shares how philosophy professor and World War II veteran Glenn Gray and his book “The Warriors: Reflections on Men in Battle” helped him come to terms with his own experiences in Vietnam. For centuries, philosophers like Gray have sought ways to make sense of the world and better understand our place in it—from the order of the cosmos to the nature of beauty to the chaos and brutality of war. And, for just as many centuries they have inspired, intrigued, and challenged us to consider new ideas, and offered perspectives on difficult issues to help us navigate our lives and set the course of civilizations. As chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, William Adams helped oversee the roll-out of an agency-wide initiative “Standing Together: The Humanities and the Experience of War,” which seeks to use the humanities to help Americans understand the experiences of service members as they return to civilian life.