Dutton remembered

Don Scott

Friends and family gathered at Lamb & Hayward's Westpark Chapel in Burnside this morning to pay tribute to Dutton.

Relevant offers

Canterbury University philosophy professor Denis Dutton was honoured at a memorial service in Christchurch today.

Dutton lost his battle with prostate cancer on Tuesday, aged 66.

It was less than two weeks after he was awarded a Canterbury University research medal at a Christchurch Town Hall graduation ceremony.

Friends, family and peers gathered at Lamb & Hayward's Westpark Chapel in Burnside this morning to pay tribute to Dutton.

Son Ben said his father had a dislike of ``pomp and ceremony'', but loved nothing more than a house full of debate, ideas and stories.

Ben said he and his sister Sonia had perhaps had an ``unorthodox childhood with debates over the dinner table'', and Dutton had always shared his sense of passion and curiosity with them.

He said `generosity' was the first word that came to mind when he thought of Dutton. ``This generosity with his intellect certainly helped shape us.''

Ben also paid tribute to his mother Margit, who had nursed Dutton during his illness and had been a ``touchstone'' for his ideas throughout their marriage.

Daughter Sonia said she admired Dutton's ``insatiable curiosity, the vastness of his intellect [and] his wit''.

``He was my closest oracle, my touchstone, my trusty confidant of ideas and secrets.''

University of Canterbury acting vice chancellor Ian Town said he had only come to know Dutton recently, but knew he was held in great esteem by his colleagues and students.

He said Dutton had a ``lively intellect'' and that his website, Arts and Letters Daily, was an ``extraordinary accomplishment''.

Dutton's ability to converse, share ideas and promote debate was exactly what the ``essence'' of a university should be, Town said.

Friend Eric Crampton, from the University of Canterbury's Department of Economic and Finance, said Dutton had friends all over the university.

He said Dutton ``went out on a high note'' as while his contemporaries were ``resting on their laurels, he was clogging up my inbox with new triumphs''.

Philosopher Jack Copeland said he and Dutton joined the University of Canterbury around the same time in 1984 and Dutton had become a ``wonderful colleague'' over the years.

``He was friendly, interesting, creative, rational, diplomatic, passionate, entertaining, co-operative. He was the complete professional. Denis understood exactly what the job involved and he did it perfectly.''

Dutton was born in California in February 1944 and received a PhD in philosophy from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1975.

He joined the Canterbury University staff in 1984 and was appointed professor of philosophy last year.

Founding the Arts & Letters Daily website in 1998 was one of his most notable achievements.

It was named the world's best website in January 1999 by the Observer newspaper and still receives 3.7 million page views a month.

In October 2005 Dutton was named as one of Time magazine's ``most influential media personalities in the world''.

- © Fairfax NZ News