remembering Giovanni

phil mcmichael

Giovanni liked a challenge. Not because he always triumphed (though in my view I think he triumphed more than his humility allowed), but because it inspired him to take intellectual risks and think things through in a quite distinctive way. Revisiting Adam Smith in the light of Chinese developments is one instance. The story of his brilliant Long Twentieth Century becoming a multi-century inquiry is another. From his early Geometry of Imperialism through to his most recent writing, Giovanni never took the easy way out. He is perhaps best known and admired for his ability to produce elegant architectural themes in his work that at once simplified and complicated his understanding and communication of historical processes. Interpersonally, he liked to challenge those around him, as part of his particular form of engagement with the world. I am deeply grateful for his mentorship in my second stint at Binghamton as an visiting assistant professor – we used to lunch together regularly, and it was during this time he impressed on me the need to develop what he termed ‘analytical nerve.’ Whether or not he was successful, the point is that Giovanni engaged with us in our intellectual struggles, without being overwhelming. He provoked gracefully. This, to me, was the core of Giovanni – he was a sweet man, who took people seriously, including himself.