Philosophy

Mr. Hackman liked to talk about oak trees almost every time he tried to explain a new philosopher to the five or so of us that were actually listening. His desk in the front of the room (cluttered with a stack of neat manila folders, a candle, his extra large Dunkin Donuts cup, and a light-up children’s toy) faced the window at the other end of the room, which he would look out while explaining oak trees. He told us that the branches on oak trees grow staggered rather than in a symmetrical patter, a fact I have since not been able to stop thinking about. He used oak trees as an example in the Allegory of the Cave, and he drew them on the board and gazed across the room and out the window behind our heads as he sat in his chair, teaching. To have someone spend fifty minutes for four days a week solely talking to you about various philosophers doesn’t sound appealing to most people, but Mr. Hackman made it appealing. The class laughed with him when he drew faces on the board that resembled Easter Island statues, and we all listened eagerly when he told us about his morning routine and his early life as a lover of math.

The textbook was rarely used in or outside of class, and even so, from what we did read I could gather that it was not an ordinary textbook. Its cartoons and a playful font reflected Mr. Hackman’s cheery attitude – but it wasn’t so much that he was cheery and happy to teach philosophy as it was his general attitude towards life. He found himself humorous and at the same time was one of the most selfless people I’ve met. He handed out tests with a “bon chance” and said goodbye at the end of the period with an "hasta la vista". The décor in his room changed by the day, but his jalapeño lights that surrounded the white board never moved. On one occasion, he asked a student to hang his disco ball from the ceiling and turned off the lights to make sure it worked.

Most of the students surrounding me were seniors, and it was spring and the sun was finally out after four months, so they had little to no motivation to do anything but sit and listen. I did the same, lost in the crowd, but I left Mr. Hackman’s room for the last time after turning in my final essay on Walden with a newfound respect for the teacher and the class. I had spent six months learning the names and identities of Plato, Socrates, Thales, and more. I had taken tests and written essays, and out of the unique experience grew my appreciation for Mr. Hackman and all that he has taught me.