If you are a delicate flower, then do not take his courses. He does not suffer fools gladly. On the other hand, I learned more from Gerson's course than any other undergraduate philosophy course.

Prof. Gerson may not be the most popular professor in the department, but I certainly learned more from his course than I did in any other philosophy course in my four years. He's very clear, knowledgable and fair. Brilliant professor.

He has little patience for stupidity, but appreciates ignorance. A very good prof, who knows his material forwards and backwards.

I've taken five courses with Gerson. While he is intolerant of those who do not prepare for class, the profundity of his lectures far exceeds all the other courses I've taken from the Pol Sci or Phl departments at UofT. He is the best prof I've had.

Distracted when students ask questions in class because it disrupts the flow of his elegant thought. When he gets excited his sentences tend to get too long. He will not hesitate to chew you down in front of your class mates but at least you'll learn something. Must Commit and put your Soul to 200

a monument of intellect. one of the most intelligent human beings i have ever encountered. those who call him arrogant are still trying to comprehend just how much more intelligent this man is than them. commitment and dedication are a must to succeed in his class. respect.

Prof. Gerson is an inspiration

A brilliant man who cares very much about philosophy. Do NOT show up for class not having done the readings. Be warned - he will call on you, for sure. During the first part of the semester, he was hard quite hard on students who I think he thought were not committed to doing the work. He was much nicer in the latter half, that's for sure.

I thought he was great. A little easily agitated but a great lecturer.

Gerson...is insane. The way that he delivers his commentary and insight on the texts is unmatched by any other prof I've been in contact with. He's pretty intimidating though.

Word to the wise: if you want to do Greek philosophy at U of T at any level, you must go through Gerson at some point. Learn to love him. Study hard and you can do really well in his course. And be intimidated - it gets the adrenaline going, and you'll need it.

Gerson is a really good prof. While very intimidating, he is also very knowledgeable. He has the ability of taking something that you agree with and you think sounds write, and show you how wrong you truly were. Very hard tests though, and the no hat rule is a bit tough when you have some bad hat hair. The no coffee rule is even worse.

I'm sorry if you cannot step up to his level, this course is simply not for you.

i'm taking the aristotle course, it will be my 3rd course with gerson. i plan on taking his plato course & his 4th year seminar next year as well. this man is a pillar of scholarship, intensity and rigour. he is a paradigm of ancient thinking and engages his subject with authority, thoroughness and a religious dedication to be admired.

Harsh when answering questions, but he is very clear and a great lecturer.

Very clear, concise lectures. He is purposely intimidating to eliminate those who aren't willing to do a large amount of work. Fair tests. He does not tolerate unfounded questions - and if a question is founded, he still makes you feel awkward, but usually has an answer. It is not about stepping up to his level - he is a good lecturer, that is all.

The belief that Prof. Gerson has nothing but brilliant answers is just silly. He can be very narrow-minded, belligerent, and downright abusive in responding to students. It's unquestionable that the man is a sometimes unparalleled lecturer, but he's not without faults. Worth taking a class with, but not the deity some students make him out to be.

It's worth it.

Gerson is AWESOME. that is all.

This man shows why evaluations are problematic. I took him 12 years ago, and found him extremely arrogant. But he is one of very few profs whose teaching -- a way of thinking and reading, not just his offputting lecture style -- stayed with me.

Gerson really knows his stuff. If you show him you're thinking he will respect that even if you disagree with him. However he is a pretty hard marker and he does not give much direction on the papers which makes it hard to know what he's looking for.

He is one of the most knowledgeable professors at UofT and his lectures are always tremendously helpful. A lot of the complaints here I don't agree with. You can disagree with him, but you have to justify your position. Show him that you are serious with the material and serious with your objections and he will take you seriously.

He is brilliant and inspiring. Massive understanding of his field. He expects a lot and appreciates it when he gets it. Think through your questions and do the readings and you;ll be fine. Best prof I have had so far.

I am now a graduate student in philosophy at a top-30 university. Gerson is not a nice guy--but he doesn't get paid to be one! He gets paid to teach, and that he does really well. He was one of the best lecturers I had while I was at UofT, rivaled only by Dickie. His classes are tough, but you'll learn a lot. Strongly recommended.

Calling him "bad" or "good" is oversimplifying. If you are prepared for his classes, then his lectures can be phenomenal. But he's not friendly or approachable. The biggest disappointment in taking his course was the fact that he left me hanging at a 79. But if you're prepared for the greatest phil. challenge, he may be one of your best profs ever.

I'm not surprised to read a lot of the negative comments about him - these are left mostly by wimps who got their feelings hurt, the same ones who speak out in class before thinking first and quickly get shot down. He is not a "nice guy", and that's refreshing- he is not fake, but rather he is disciplined and has an amazing mind. Highly recommended

by far the best professor I've ever had. a true philosopher, and not just a professor of philosophy.

A knowledgeable prof, though also difficult in marking. Attend lectures, do whatever's assigned to you (or don't and hope you don't get caught), ask questions if you don't understand, and you should be fine. If you're lazy, expect to get chewed out while everyone else in the class stares at you with pity/shock in their eyes, even on the second day.

Those who take so much offense with his teaching should just open up their minds and not take things so personally. He's not afraid to outright refute your arguments or ideas, but if you just listen to what he's saying, you'll learn a lot. Gerson is by far one of the best professors I've ever taken a course with.

A brilliant professor who challenges the minds of his students. He takes his course seriously and expects the students to do the same - don't be late to his lectures and do the reading.

I was taught by Dr. Gerson in the middle 90s. Although I didn't do well in his course, the lessons I learned carried on into my life and now form part of my own teaching. Thank you for the great foundation.

Gerson is a brilliant PHILOSOPHER. He loves philosophizing and unfortunately the cause of his rudeness is that students will come to class late, don't do the readings and don't appreciate the classroom. If you decide to take his class because you are interested in learning important material, you will find yourself the best professor at UofT.

Lloyd Gerson is a professor who deserves all the respect he can get, he is so charismatic in the way he speaks, he is authoritative and knows exactly how to explain concepts clearly. He is tough but this is one of those classes that will end up enriching your knowledge.

One of the hardest classes I've ever taken. The passion he transmits to his students is mind-blowing. This course will change your mind.

One of the hardest courses I've taken - Gerson expects a lot from his students and he's fairly uncompromising in that respect (and most others). That being said, his lectures are great and I learned a lot about an area of philosophy I don't consider myself interested in... Enjoy the course for what it is and try to ignore his bursts of arrogance.

Gerson is so well known in his field that it's awesome to have him as a teacher. He is very matter of fact, which offends some, but he challenges you to push yourself and doesn't waste time doing it nicely. His lectures are tough, but if you put in the time, do the readings, his class can be super rewarding and you'll learn a LOT

Best PHL prof at UofT? I think so.

Professor Gerson is in the top three teachers I have had at U of T. I learned more than a lot of information about Plato, I learned how to think, how to ask the right questions of the text, and how to engage with the philosophy latent in the text. Don't be put off by his intensity: he cares deeply about the subject and the art of teaching.

Professor Gerson is a great lecturer and an expert in his field. You will definitely learn a lot about ancient philosophy, and philosophy in general, if you show up to lectures and pay attention. He has a somewhat disagreeable personality and can be a pretty hard grader, but if you rise to the challenge it can be very rewarding intellectually.

Prof. Gerson a brilliant expert in his field. I've had him at both grad and undergrad level. He does what a good philosophy prof should do: he challenges students' ideas, trying to get them to see the contradictions or logical conclusions of their ideas. He is cheerful -- smiles every class, sometimes tells jokes -- and approachable in office hrs.