Sean Mann
Encyclopedia
Sean Mann was the Allan K. Wood Distinguished Professor of Bioethics
and Korean language
at the University of California, Berkeley
.
. As a youth, he became fascinated with the idea that all living things have moral value, even the very small. His passion for defending the rights of the living, even the very small, grew out of his horror at his schoolmates' treatment of animals. In one such frequently cited incident, Mann saw a young squirrel beheaded by a set of pruning shears. The perpetrator of the act, Travis Robey, grew to be a powerful mayor of Newton, where his populist politics and penchant for hyperbole struck a chord with the citizenry of the small, farming community. Mann was appalled by Robey's success and didn't return to Newton until the mayor's death in the final days of March 1974. Upon his return, Mann refused to speak Mayor Robey's name and instead referred to him as that "merciless, bloodthirsty twit."
and biology
from Kalamazoo College
in Kalamazoo
, Michigan
, Mann moved on to Johns Hopkins University
, where he began working on his Ph.D. in the burgeoning field of bioethics. However, just prior to finishing his dissertation, he left school to work as a missionary in southern Korea
. After spending eleven years preaching the Christian
gospel and immersing himself in Korean dialects, Mann travelled to the United Kingdom
to finish his doctorate. He was asked to leave Bristol University after the publication of his controversial monograph, Images of the Christ as Represented through Korean Ideograms. It is still uncertain whether the university occasioned his departure because of the provocative nature of his language analysis, or because he fraudulently used the university presses to produce his work.
Mann returned to Kansas in 1958, where he became an itinerant bookseller and part-time preacher. After some time travelling around the state, he enrolled at the University of Kansas
and took his Ph.D. in 1960.
in Walla Walla, Washington
, and immediately began revising his doctoral dissertation for publication. This work - an analysis of comparative philosophical perspectives on biology and moral life - was published to immense disappointment and ruthless scholarly attack in July 1962. This fact is especially notable because its 1965 reprinting would revolutionize the field of bioethics. A Question of Value: Life, Death, and the Very Small earned Mann the reputation of being the Martin Luther
of the field, demonstrating his willingness to stand by his convictions in the face of popular onslaught. He was dismissed from the Whitman College after publication (ostensibly for romantic involvement with students, though today this is widely doubted), but was quickly hired by the Department of Bioethics at the University of California, Berkeley.
His next book, Biopiracy
: The Scourge of the Future, was well before its time. From his interest in the history of the patent
for typewriters, Dr. Mann actually envisioned a time when plants and living things, even the very small, might be controlled by patents. His views on this subject, germinating for some time, led to his revolutionary anarcho-syndicalist political views. However, his radical ideology always deferred to his evangelistic Christian beliefs.
Predictably, these two currents of Mann's life did not harmonize as well as he would have liked. He was shunned by the Revolutionary Tendency for Workers' Struggle for the address he delivered at an IWW
rally in 1971 expounding the necessity of belief in Jesus Christ for the triumph of the anarcho-syndicalist movement. Furthermore, the "independent" flock of religious believers he gathered in California
were none too impressed by the fervor of his revolutionary politics.
Despite the fact that he was caught in the crossfire of these two very different viewpoints, Mann maintained that his beliefs were reconcilable but did not attempt to unify his constituencies. Instead, he exhibited the utmost respect for both. As one would-be "Mannist" quipped, "[t]he professor did not force his politics on us, he left us free to worship. I could tell - I knew him well, you see - that he wanted us to believe more, but he chose to remain silent. For this, I feel he was a true believer." Mann's political "flock" similarly seemed to accept his dual loyalty. IWW supporter Hans Drucker mentioned that "Mann would be silent as a gas-ridden ghost whenever religion entered the conversation. He knew how we felt; we knew how he felt. No hurtful words ever crossed lips in the Professor's presence." Some admirers might have felt that Mann could reconcile the beliefs, but the vast majority did not. Dr. Mann spent much of the late 1960s and '70's without a political or religious organization to disseminate his writings.
Mann spent the last year of his life hobbled by pinworms and incontinence
. His last communication, a letter he wrote to the pastor of the church of his youth in Newton, Kansas, was written in indecipherable hand and signed with an "X".
Bioethics
Bioethics is the study of controversial ethics brought about by advances in biology and medicine. Bioethicists are concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, and philosophy....
and Korean language
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
.
Early life
Dr. Mann was born on April 6, 1932 in Newton, KansasNewton, Kansas
Newton is a city in and the county seat of Harvey County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 19,132. Newton is located north of Wichita and is included in the Wichita metropolitan statistical area...
. As a youth, he became fascinated with the idea that all living things have moral value, even the very small. His passion for defending the rights of the living, even the very small, grew out of his horror at his schoolmates' treatment of animals. In one such frequently cited incident, Mann saw a young squirrel beheaded by a set of pruning shears. The perpetrator of the act, Travis Robey, grew to be a powerful mayor of Newton, where his populist politics and penchant for hyperbole struck a chord with the citizenry of the small, farming community. Mann was appalled by Robey's success and didn't return to Newton until the mayor's death in the final days of March 1974. Upon his return, Mann refused to speak Mayor Robey's name and instead referred to him as that "merciless, bloodthirsty twit."
Education
After taking his B.A. in philosophyPhilosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
from Kalamazoo College
Kalamazoo College
Kalamazoo College, also known as K College or simply K, is a private liberal arts college in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1833, the college is among the 100 oldest in the country. Today, it produces more Peace Corps volunteers per capita than any other U.S...
in Kalamazoo
Kalamazoo, Michigan
The area on which the modern city stands was once home to Native Americans of the Hopewell culture, who migrated into the area sometime before the first millennium. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. The Hopewell civilization began to...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, Mann moved on to Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
, where he began working on his Ph.D. in the burgeoning field of bioethics. However, just prior to finishing his dissertation, he left school to work as a missionary in southern Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
. After spending eleven years preaching the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
gospel and immersing himself in Korean dialects, Mann travelled to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
to finish his doctorate. He was asked to leave Bristol University after the publication of his controversial monograph, Images of the Christ as Represented through Korean Ideograms. It is still uncertain whether the university occasioned his departure because of the provocative nature of his language analysis, or because he fraudulently used the university presses to produce his work.
Mann returned to Kansas in 1958, where he became an itinerant bookseller and part-time preacher. After some time travelling around the state, he enrolled at the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
and took his Ph.D. in 1960.
Academic career
After leaving the University of Kansas, Dr. Mann took a position as associate lecturer in bioethics at Whitman CollegeWhitman College
Whitman College is a private, co-educational, non-sectarian, residential undergraduate liberal arts college located in Walla Walla, Washington. Initially founded as a seminary by a territorial legislative charter in 1859, the school became a four year degree granting institution in 1883...
in Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla, Washington
Walla Walla is the largest city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 31,731 at the 2010 census...
, and immediately began revising his doctoral dissertation for publication. This work - an analysis of comparative philosophical perspectives on biology and moral life - was published to immense disappointment and ruthless scholarly attack in July 1962. This fact is especially notable because its 1965 reprinting would revolutionize the field of bioethics. A Question of Value: Life, Death, and the Very Small earned Mann the reputation of being the Martin Luther
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...
of the field, demonstrating his willingness to stand by his convictions in the face of popular onslaught. He was dismissed from the Whitman College after publication (ostensibly for romantic involvement with students, though today this is widely doubted), but was quickly hired by the Department of Bioethics at the University of California, Berkeley.
His next book, Biopiracy
Biopiracy
- Biopiracy and bioprospecting :Bioprospecting is an umbrella term describing the discovery of new and useful biological samples and mechanisms, typically in less-developed countries, either with or without the help of indigenous knowledge, and with or without compensation...
: The Scourge of the Future, was well before its time. From his interest in the history of the patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
for typewriters, Dr. Mann actually envisioned a time when plants and living things, even the very small, might be controlled by patents. His views on this subject, germinating for some time, led to his revolutionary anarcho-syndicalist political views. However, his radical ideology always deferred to his evangelistic Christian beliefs.
Predictably, these two currents of Mann's life did not harmonize as well as he would have liked. He was shunned by the Revolutionary Tendency for Workers' Struggle for the address he delivered at an IWW
Industrial Workers of the World
The Industrial Workers of the World is an international union. At its peak in 1923, the organization claimed some 100,000 members in good standing, and could marshal the support of perhaps 300,000 workers. Its membership declined dramatically after a 1924 split brought on by internal conflict...
rally in 1971 expounding the necessity of belief in Jesus Christ for the triumph of the anarcho-syndicalist movement. Furthermore, the "independent" flock of religious believers he gathered in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
were none too impressed by the fervor of his revolutionary politics.
Despite the fact that he was caught in the crossfire of these two very different viewpoints, Mann maintained that his beliefs were reconcilable but did not attempt to unify his constituencies. Instead, he exhibited the utmost respect for both. As one would-be "Mannist" quipped, "[t]he professor did not force his politics on us, he left us free to worship. I could tell - I knew him well, you see - that he wanted us to believe more, but he chose to remain silent. For this, I feel he was a true believer." Mann's political "flock" similarly seemed to accept his dual loyalty. IWW supporter Hans Drucker mentioned that "Mann would be silent as a gas-ridden ghost whenever religion entered the conversation. He knew how we felt; we knew how he felt. No hurtful words ever crossed lips in the Professor's presence." Some admirers might have felt that Mann could reconcile the beliefs, but the vast majority did not. Dr. Mann spent much of the late 1960s and '70's without a political or religious organization to disseminate his writings.
Late Life
Perhaps out of loneliness or frustration with organized politics and religion, Dr. Mann returned to his time in Korea. Fusing his evangelical faith with his knowledge of Korean symbology and language, Dr. Mann set out to reinterpret Christ's teachings. Through painstaking research, Dr. Mann described how two thousand year old Korean Ideograms proved Christ's presence in the Asian country.Mann spent the last year of his life hobbled by pinworms and incontinence
Urinary incontinence
Urinary incontinence is any involuntary leakage of urine. It is a common and distressing problem, which may have a profound impact on quality of life. Urinary incontinence almost always results from an underlying treatable medical condition but is under-reported to medical practitioners...
. His last communication, a letter he wrote to the pastor of the church of his youth in Newton, Kansas, was written in indecipherable hand and signed with an "X".