Has a big ego, but deserves it: he's brilliant.

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Great teacher in the tradition of Leo Strauss.

A+ prof , great stories

Thought provoking and inspirational classes

Egoistic, but a good, smart teacher!

A great teacher; he is clear, insightful, and exciting

He is a brilliant man. Nuff said.

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Awesome guy, good teacher.... hard class, but it was great

11/14/03

You'll do fine as long as you can spit back exactly what he says in lecture, no thought required (don't bother doing the reading). Has a bad habit of dating female students though.

Be there and listen . . . then spit it all back on the test. He is an amusing guy though! Very smart.

Smartest man I've ever met, great insights. I learned a lot.

Pretty adept at clarifying complex theories and teachings. Strange dude though.

Take notes to make sense of the readings. He's a little weird and aloof. Big chested girls sit in front.

He is a first-rate professor, heads and shoulders above anyone else in the Political Science department. If you go to UMaine, you won't get the most for your money if you don't take a class from him. His teaching demands respect.

He makes valid points that often don't follow the popular interpritation of the text, and is able to prove his point.The best umaine has to offer for lectures in the classroom, but try to ignore his personal life

Brillant man, Great Teacher, Loved listeding to him speak(both on and off topic), Sketchy Character outside of class

Very smart man. has some different views on life and although I don't agree on some of them, it is still very interesting to hear his . I enjoyed his class VERY much.

For all the bad rap he gets, noone really knows him well enough to merit half the things they say about him. Despite some of his controversial standpoints, he is an awesome professor.

He's a very good professor, and I recommend him highly.

A brilliant man. He'll keep your attention for an entire class. If you're interested in philosophy Palmer is your guy

Palmer is one of the most intellegent people I have ever met. He leaves your relationship with him in your hands. Go to his office hours. He's very interesting. Ignore his personal life.

Not taking into account his personal life, this is one of the best professors I've ever encountered. His teaching style makes otherwise tedious material engaging. POS 201 was one of the most interesting classes I've ever taken and that's saying a lot considering the subject matter.

I take every class this professor offers. I am a philosophy major and this professor teaches philosophy better than the philosophy department. He rubs some people the wrong way but take a class before you judge. Hands down the best professor I have ever had. Makes me want to stay in school 4 ever.

Palmer has spent thirty-five years studying the history of philosphy: nearly all the great philosophers from Presocratics to Heidegger; he thinks completely outside the box. And you expect him to live his like within the confines of American middle-class values? Wake up and smell the coffee.

Honestly I don't really know why I like this guy so much, but I really do. He is very smart and a very good teacher. He is interesting and engaging.

I disagree with almost all of Palmers political and social views, but that's cool, becuase he's funny. I've taken a bunch of his classes and he was always interesting, helpful and just generally a fun teacher. I learned a lot from him.

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He hates the modern world for good reason and anyone who attacks him for his politics has probably never spoken to him at length.He studied under Bloom so a rehash of those arguments is expected and where else can you here a Straussian perspective on a campus dominated by Marxists?There should be class in the sociology dept. on his personal life.

This man is a genius, hands down the smartest person on campus. Classes are always informative and entertaining, definitely worth attending. People don't like him because he tells it like it is and doesn't worry about "political correctness", and some people can't deal with that. Definitely take any classes you can with him, he's brilliant

Hes very entertaining and has a very cynical sense of humor, brilliant, I learned A LOT about all the books he assigned, good teaching style only drawback is he tends to go off on tangants and sometimes it is hard to figure out what his point is- but his classes are absoluely worth taking- i reccommend him.

The lack of syllabus really annoyed me since I like planning ahead. He says at the very beginning that your grade is based on however he feels you did not just your actual test grades so it's hard to know how you're doing in the class. Interesting but also boring at the same time. Almost always late for class.

If the true meaning of college is to gain insight into the meaing of the world around us then Palmer's classes should be required.

Palmer is a modern-day Socrates, and he's not one of those "the truth is whatever you want it to be" kind of teachers. He's read EVERYTHING, and he knows his stuff inside and out, so I value his opinion quite highly. Class frequently gets off-topic because he feels compelled to explain things not relevant to class if he thinks they're important.

This man is a genius & his lectures are bar none. All his classes are recommended for those that care about a liberal education & learning how to truly think for themselves. For all those out there commenting on his PERSONAL behavior - IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS! In fact, you're the audience that most needs to take his classes & open your minds.

Palmer definitely knows his stuff. He cares about you as s student, whether you believe it or not. Not all that interesting of a class, unless you are interested in Plato's Republic. I thought it was going to be something different, but it definitely has its worthwhile moments.

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palmer is one of the most arrogant ( not to sound repetitive of others comments) professors I've ever come across. That being said, from the first day of class I enjoyed him as a professor. Though I find it hard to force myself to go to these sometimes pointless lectures I do get a lot of moral (I suppose you could say) insight and comedic relief.

He is the best prof. we have in the Political Science Department and at the University of Maine. Samrt and funny and really cares about students. Go to his office hours...that is where it is at.

Response to previous post: He doesn't teach POS 203. Perhaps you are confusing with Ken Palmer (same last name)?

Palmer is extremely knowledgeable in the subjects he teaches, and his in-class essay exams are extremely reasonable to be successful on. It is absolutely important to go to every class because he pretty much outlines the whole readings and blatantly alludes to what material is important to study for the in-class essays.

Best damn professor the University of Maine's got. He speaks his mind and doesn't refrain from being honest. The best part is he makes you think, not in the typical manner but out side the box. More professors should be like him.

I'm not sure what would make one believe Mr. Palmer to be arrogant, if anything, he is self-deprecating and humble. His lectures are tangential, but amusing he is honest and certainly not PC. My only complaint (and I've been doing poorly) is that he does not place more emphasis on important points than on unimportant ones which makes studying hard

Palmer is definitely out there but the guys brilliant. His classes are definitely worth attending. Must go into the course with an open mind. Took his class 1st semester freshman year and Plato was a little over my head but If you meet with him the guy will work with you for hours and those are even more interesting than class.

I will admit, going into this class I was nervous. You always hear rumors about Palmer and how bad he is. But please, give it a chance and go in with an open head. The man is brilliant, absolutely brilliant. If you seriously want to study ethics or philosophy his class is well worth any hardship you may face.