BREAKING NEWS: In Fall 2027, Wyoming will become the nation’s first state in which it is impossible for an undergraduate to major in Philosophy (Chronicle of Higher Education Daily Briefing, July 27th online).
One of the saddest repercussions of this development is the likely shutting down of the annual “Philosophers’ Rodeo Days” in Cody, Wyoming. Established in 1952 by Chester Stybell, a cattle rancher who obtained his B. A. in Philosophy from the University of Wyoming in 1930, the rodeo was open to Philosophy majors from all over the state.
The three-day event in July features typical rodeo competitions such as bull riding, calf roping, and barrel racing. In addition, contestants analyze classic philosophical brainteasers (e.g., “What is the soul?” “Does altruism truly exist?” “Can you really be friends with your ex-spouse?” “Why is a wild pitch in baseball not recorded as an error?”) while navigating — blindfolded and on horseback — a full-scale re-creation of Plato’s Cave.
Carson Stybell, Chester’s son (B. A. in Philosophy, University of Wyoming, 1961), took over the rodeo in 1993 after his dad suffered a fatal aneurysm while sitting on the back porch trying to figure out whether a Mobius Strip has one side or two. Stybell the Younger informed reporters that attendance at the event has been declining steadily over the past two decades: “The high-water mark for the rodeo was 1998, when we had over 800 contestants and a three-day total of nearly 15,000 attendees. This year, only 27 philosopher cowboys showed up and we didn’t even sell 600 tickets over the three days. It’s a damn shame. Thank God my dad didn’t live long enough to see this; it would have broken his heart. Where else in America can you find rodeo clowns dressed as Socrates, Aristotle, and John Rawls?”
Where else, indeed?