Hannah Ryan | News Editor
A former Fellow of Trinity College and professor in the School of English, Dr Gerald Morgan, has voiced his disapproval of the Scholars and Fellows Nude Charity Calendar 2014 in a number of widely-circulated emails, the recipients of which include members of the Irish press, Dáil Éireann and the U.K. Parliament. Morgan’s complaints primarily targeted the participation of Fellows in the calendar and the fact that the Senior Common Room was featured in one of the photographs produced.
In a public email sent to the Editor of The Irish Times on 27 December 2013, Morgan deplored the “ill-advised” participation of the Fellows in the project, along with the “lack of originality” inherent in the idea of the calendar. He continued, “This is mere childish nonsense, and it trivialises the world of scholarship that the Fellows represent.
“As one who resigned his own Fellowship in 2002 in order to protect the dignity of Fellowship, I wish to dissociate myself from this ill-judged Calendar as far as the Fellows are concerned. I am astonished that this unwise contribution was countenanced by the Board of the College.”
The image concerned includes the former and current Chair of the Fellows, members of Board, serving officers, a former Head of School and other prominent Fellows. Dr Morgan has not yet registered a formal complaint about the calendar, nor has he written to the Scholars Committee. Furthermore, the Senior Common Room is a private, autonomous organisation separate from College governance, thus the Provost cannot interfere in its activities.
Morgan resigned over a disciplinary matter in 2002, then contested the resignation in a case which was brought to the High Court. The Court accepted the College procedures and a settlement was reached thereafter. He is currently a member of the Senior Common Room but has no other remaining links with the College. Morgan is known for sending large batches of emails to numerous people, which has resulted in his college email privileges being revoked; he previously issued complaints on a number of other issues, including the removal of borrowing rights in the College Library from retired academics.
In his next email sent on 28 December, this time to members of College staff, Dr Morgan put forth the suggestion that rather than participate in the calendar, each Fellow of the College should contribute €6,500 to the Trinity Access Programme, warning that “otherwise we shall be dismissed as mere exhibitionists and hypocrites masquerading as beautiful minds and great scholars.”
On 29 December, Morgan sent another email, addressed to a member of the College Board, describing the offending photograph as depicting “Fellows with bird brains and poor judgment disporting themselves in various states of disarray”. He further complained of not being consulted on the matter as a member of the Senior Common Room, and accused the Fellows of treating “students on the Trinity Access Programme as the recipients of charity”.
“In a competition for the ten dumbest Fellows of Trinity College Dublin in 2013-2014 the public-spirited charitable nudists in the Senior Common Room will be hard to beat.”
The final email to which The University Times gained access was sent to the Provost and some 180 other recipients on 5 January 2014. In this message, Morgan stated: “In a competition for the ten dumbest Fellows of Trinity College Dublin in 2013-2014 the public-spirited charitable nudists in the Senior Common Room will be hard to beat. In my view they ought to be banned from membership of the Senior Common Room for a year.”
In the face of this criticism, Secretary to the Scholars, Amy Worrall Sch., asserted that the College was “very supportive” of the idea of the calendar. Dr Eoin O’Dell of the School of Law, a Fellow and participant in the calendar, added: “[The College’s response] is another example of the widespread support we enjoyed.
“In general, objectors shout the loudest, drowning out the majority who are supportive.”
On Morgan’s protestations in particular, O’Dell stated: “I find his correspondence tendentious. We do not dignify it with a response.”
Ms Worrall also spoke to The University Times about the reaction to the calendar more generally:
“Ultimately the people in the calendar represent themselves,” Worrall stated. “There are people in College who are grumbling, but there is also huge support. Some of the complaints are legitimate, some are not. Some people expressed worries about objectifying women, but we were careful to maintain a gender balance – in fact, there are more men than women [in the calendar], and there are no lewd portrayals of women – or men.”
“We tried to deal with constructive criticism,” Ms Worrall continued. “We did not want to offend anyone. The most important thing was not to disrespect the institution.”
O’Dell added that there have also been complaints surrounding the photograph for July, in that it bears some resemblance to the Last Supper scene, but Ms Worrall firmly stated that any such similarities were not intended.
On whether he felt that the Scholars and Fellows Calendar has been targeted by critics more than the Trinity Cancer Society Naked Calendar which was produced at the same time, Dr O’Dell commented that if so, this was because of the participation of the Fellows.
“The other calendar was of an entirely different genre,” Ms Worrall explained. “They chose not to have staff, whereas we made the strategic decision [to include staff]. It made it more legitimate for staff and adults to purchase the calendar, thereby increasing our market.”
Worrall said that the production of charity calendars by Scholars and Fellows in future years might be prevented by funding issues. “90% of the cost of printing was sponsored, and we also had a grant from the Trinity Association and Trust,” she said. “As scholars are precluded from applying for CSC grants, our funding opportunities are limited and we are extremely grateful for their support.”
The Scholars and Fellows Nude Charity Calendar is still on sale and can be purchased for €5 in Mandela House and from the online library shop. €5,000 has been raised so far.
