Robert Hilary Kane

Robert “Bob” Hilary Kane died on April 20, 2024, at the age of 85 after a brief illness. He was surrounded by family and friends at his home in Guilford, CT. Bob had moved to Guilford in 2022, and up until very recently, he could be spotted at his grandchildren’s sporting events or doing his daily walk on the town green.

Born in Boston, MA, Nov. 25, 1938, to Hilary Thomas Kane and Vivian Lenzi Kane, Bob was raised in Maynard, MA, and graduated with high honors from Maynard High School. He spoke fondly of growing up in the vibrant immigrant town, surrounded by grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and many family friends. He would often marvel at the diversity of his community and how rich his childhood was because of it. A love of learning, sports and family blessed his formative years.

Bob studied philosophy at Holy Cross College from 1956 to 1960 (B.A. 1960), the University of Vienna from 1958 to 1959, and at Yale University from 1960 to 1964 (M.A. 1962, Ph.D. 1964). It was during his time at Yale that he met the love of his life, Claudette Drennan Kane, a student at Yale drama school at the time. They bonded over discussions (and spirited debates) about philosophy and theology. The couple married at the Saint Thomas Moore Chapel on the Yale campus in 1965, and would go on to debate, inspire and support one another through over 55 years of partnership. Bob and Claudette had two sons, Russell Hilary Kane and Nathan Robert Kane, whom they raised in Austin, Texas, after moving there in 1970.

Bob taught at Fordham University (1964-1967), Haverford College (1967-1970), and then at the University of Texas at Austin for the remainder of his career. Among many teaching awards, he was an inaugural member of the university’s Academy of Distinguished Teachers. His students valued his intelligence, enthusiasm and his openness to their questions. Bob strongly felt and often said that a college education should teach students “how to live and be reflective about yourself.” Bob is the author of 12 books on the topics of free will and ethics, and the Great Courses lecture series, The Quest for Meaning: Values, Ethics and the Modern Experience. Through his teaching and writing, he wanted to show people that it is possible to have free will and moral responsibility even though we are impacted by constraints such as the laws of nature and the possibility of divine influence. He said that we are all “in the process of writing an unfinished story and forming an unfinished character.”

Bob was predeceased by his son Russell Hilary Kane in 1993; and his wife Claudette Drennan Kane in 2021. He is survived by his son Nathan Robert Kane; daughter-in-law Caitlin O’Brien; and grandchildren, Michaela Kane and Liam Kane of Guilford.

Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, please consider a contribution to one of the organizations that Bob supported: The Union of Concerned Scientists (www.ucsusa.org), The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (www.unicef.org), The National Alliance on Mental Illness (www.nami.org), or Fair Vote (www.fairvote.org).