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Elliot Aronson '54

Professor Emeritus of Psychology, University of California at Santa Cruz
Distinguished Visiting Professor, Stanford University

Favorite class
Abraham Maslow's Introductory Psychology course got me excited about the promise of humanistic psychology. It showed me that we could approach problems like prejudice, love, aggression and even war in a scientific manner and that we might use our knowledge for the betterment of society. Those aims and goals have been with me ever since.

Favorite hangout
I used to work at the snack bar in the Castle and would hang out there a lot when I wasn't working. It was an attractive coffeehouse and a great place for conversation. Occasionally, when I could overcome my shyness, I would even initiate a conversation with one of the professors.

Best memories
The best set of memories are of the General Education S group of speakers. People like Margaret Mead and Leo Szillard shared their lives with us. It was a stunning set of experiences. I also loved the spontaneous touch football and softball games that frequently sprung up in the meadow between Ford Hall and the old library. And I loved strolling hand-in-hand with a young woman around the grape arbor.

Brandeisian(s) who most influenced your life
There are six. Vera Rabinek was a fellow student of unusual depth who had a warmth, a serenity and an intelligence that I have never found in another person. We married three months after graduation in 1954; we are still married, and together we raised four wonderful children. We have seven grandchildren. Abraham Maslow was my mentor in psychology who ignited my interest in psychology — an interest that has kept me excited for more than 50 years. Aaron Gurevitch taught a course on Logic and the Scientific Method that I loved. It helped me learn critical thinking — and the art of challenging entrenched ideas sensibly. Ludvig Lewisohn taught a course on Shakespeare that was magnificent and gave me a lifelong excitement about the bard that has enriched me no end. Irwin Bodky taught a course on some of the great composers like Mozart and Beethoven that opened me to the appreciation of serious music. Finally, Ray Gilbert was my roommate and best friend during my junior and senior years. We have remained close ever since, even though we live a continent apart.

How do you stay connected to Brandeis today?
I read, with interest, the Brandeis publications. Some of my close friends are Brandeis graduates. Indeed, last year, I wrote a book in collaboration with Carol Tavris, who graduated from Brandeis a dozen years after I did.