Janet Landman

Janet Tracy Landman -- beloved mother, aunt, friend, author, poet, professor, and scholar -- died peacefully at home in Corvallis, Oregon, on June 21, 2025 (age 78), after a brief time in home hospice care.

Janet was born on February 8, 1947, in Lafayette, Indiana, to Barbara (Jacklin) Tracy and Robert C. Tracy. She was raised in a working-class household, along with her three younger brothers: Robert, Steven, and Michael. She went to St. Lawrence grade school and Central Catholic High School in Lafayette. Growing up, she was an avid fan of Ernie Banks and the Chicago Cubs. She played the organ for Mass in her church, starting when she was in 4th grade.

She earned a B.S. in Psychology from Purdue University (after initially focusing her studies on music/piano), an M.S. in Clinical Psychology from St. Francis College, and a Ph.D. in Personality Psychology from the University of Michigan.

In 1971, she married Stephen Landman; they were married for 24 years, and they had a daughter (Miriam). Later in life, Janet became the guardian of her youngest niece (Autumn). Janet was a devoted, protective, and proud mother and aunt. She also took great pride in raising and taking care of her Border Collie dogs, one after another (Frannie, Bonnie, Maggie, and then Tess).

As a professor for 25 years, Dr. Janet Landman taught a wide range of psychology courses at the University of Michigan (Psychology Department, Honors College, and Residential College), Boston University (Writing Program), and Babson College (Liberal Arts Department, History & Society Division). Many of her courses were focused on social psychology, social movements, the psychology of emotions, psychology through the lens of literature, and writing. Melvin Manis was her mentor at the University of Michigan as well as a cherished friend. When she was in the Ph.D. program at U of M, Janet (as well as her esteemed senior colleague, Daniel Kahneman) did pioneering research on the emotion of regret.

Janet was the author of two books: the critically acclaimed Regret: The Persistence of the Possible (Oxford University Press, 1993) and Looking for Revolution, Finding Murder: The Crimes and Transformation of Katherine Ann Power (Paragon Press, 2019). She interviewed Katherine Power numerous times during Power's time in prison; she also interviewed Robert McNamara (former U.S. Secretary of Defense) and wrote articles about him. Janet wrote more than 30 articles (and chapters) that were published in professional journals and academic books. In addition, she was an award-winning poet; nearly 50 of her poems have been published. Among her poetry awards was First Prize in the National Poetry Competition, sponsored by the National Writers' Union and judged by Adrienne Rich. [For more information on her professional accomplishments, see: https://janet-landman.weebly.com]

Social justice activities were also an important part of Janet's life. In the 1980s, as part of Temple Beth El's Social Action Committee (in Ann Arbor, MI), she and members of an immigration group went to Brownsville, Texas and Matamoros, Mexico to do exploratory research and interview immigration lawyers, sanctuary workers, and refugees. The Committee then decided to take on an immigration case, and they helped a Honduran refugee (and his family) get political asylum in the U.S. In 2011, she participated in the Occupy Wall Street protests in Boston, protesting against economic inequality and corporate greed; she visited the Occupy Boston encampment and donated sweaters to their Free Market, and during the Christmas season, she wrote some funny, political lyrics to the tune of Christmas carols and sang them with others there. In the years that followed, she continued to participate in political marches and protests, and she was still doing so in the last season of her life. She created handmade signs for each protest, and they were always a hit. In less visible moments, she quietly spread kindness to friends and strangers alike; something few people know is that she kept energy bars in her bag and gave them to unhoused people that she encountered on the street or on the bus.

She was a voracious reader and a true bibliophile. She read thousands of books in her lifetime -- sometimes as many as one a day in her final years (audio books once her vision became impaired). And she had an extensive personal library: more than 25 boxes' worth of books, most of which have been donated to the Benton County Library, the University of Oregon's Prison Education Program, or given away to friends. Among her many favorite authors were: Henry James (Portrait of a Lady, and The Ambassadors) and Virginia Woolf (Mrs. Dalloway). She also loved The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro, and The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. Among her favorite poets were: Alice Fulton, Sylvia Plath, Dylan Thomas, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and William Butler Yeats. She had a deep curiosity about life and the world -- everything from history to plants to geology to what makes people tick -- and a drive to learn new things and share them with others. She was still reading books and sharing interesting facts in the last week of her life.

She also loved music. She grew up playing piano and organ, in several Catholic churches. Someone once complained that she "played the organ like a man," by which they meant she played forcefully. Later in life, she also sang in the Temple Beth El choir. She liked listening to music (an eclectic mix of genres, including classical, folk, blues, and rock) and going to concerts (as well as to plays). Some of her favorite pieces of music were: Beethoven's Emperor Concerto, Orff's Carmina Burana, Bach's piano Inventions, Chopin's piano nocturnes, and almost every Paul Simon tune (especially America and The Boxer). She also loved Joni Mitchell, Nina Simone, The Beatles, and Tom Waits. She was singing until the end. In her final two weeks, she sang along to favorite songs from her YouTube playlist, as well as songs that her son-in-law played for her on guitar.

She enjoyed gardening -- especially growing flowers. She also enjoyed going for walks, and in her younger years, she hiked and jogged, and she always loved biking (which made her "feel free"): starting at a very early age and continuing into her early 70s. She was a regular bike commuter in urban Boston in her 60s.

Over the years, she lived in Indiana, Oregon, Michigan, Massachusetts, and California. She swam in both Walden Pond and Lake Tahoe, and spent time at the Great Lakes as well as on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. She climbed New England peaks and visited Yosemite, among other beautiful places. Her overseas adventures (many of which were to give talks or for other professional/university-related events) included trips to France, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands, England, and Israel.

She was multi-faceted and a bundle of contradictions: not someone who could be easily labeled or pigeon-holed. She was both cerebral and creative, immersed in both the arts and the sciences. She was sometimes analytical and serious, sometimes whimsical and quirky. Though she was often nervous about doing new things, she pushed herself to do them despite her fears: the definition of bravery. While many who knew her saw her as feisty, strong-willed, courageous, and even a "badass," she felt that she spent too much of her life being timid, especially in her earlier years. She was introverted and private, but also friendly, thoughtful, and conscientious, and she developed good friendships everywhere she lived.

After years of gradual decline from a degenerative neurological disorder (and the small strokes that it caused), as well as numerous other health issues and impairments that diminished her quality of life, her decline accelerated in the months before she died. When she entered hospice care, she was ready to move on and she was at peace with it. She felt that her passing would be (as she put it) "no tragedy," having lived a "long, full, and mostly good life." She was in remarkably good spirits during her final weeks and had many enriching conversations and visits from friends, family, and caregivers.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her three brothers. She is survived by her daughter Miriam and son-in-law Jeff, her niece Autumn and numerous other nieces and nephews, and many dear friends, including Andrea Burrow and Sarah Gray.

Her courage, compassion, and determination significantly improved the lives of many people. Her legacy will live on through her books, poetry, and articles (and all those who have read them), and through her family members, the countless college students she taught, and the friends and strangers that she helped or connected with throughout her life. Thank you to everyone who was a part of her life, and thank you to the Lumina Hospice team.

If you wish to make a donation in Janet's honor, consider donating to the ACLU, Oath.Vote, Planned Parenthood, Compassion & Choices, Lumina Hospice, your local hospice organization, or another group that helps people. Alternatively, you could plant a tree or flowers in her memory.

"We are stardust." - Joni Mitchell (Woodstock)

"Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. Live!" - Henry James (The Ambassadors)

"Follow the way of the wind." - William Butler Yeats ("The Blessed")