Grote Chair of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic
Encyclopedia
The Grote Chair of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic is an endowed chair at University College London
.
, Philosophy of Mind and Logic (originally called Logic and the Philosophy of the Human Mind) was one of two Philosophy
chairs established at the founding of University College London
. The first Mind and Logic professorship was awarded to John Hoppus
, a Congregational minister, who held the position from 1830 to 1866. George Grote
, one of the College's founders and a member of its governing Council, objected to the appointment on the grounds that the College was intended to be non-sectarian and that therefore a Philosophy chair should not be held by a minister of religion. Because of this incident, Grote resigned from the Council in 1830. In 1866 Grote, who had returned to the Council in 1849, was instrumental in preventing the awarding of the Chair to James Martineau
, a Unitarian minister, for the same reasons. Grote's preferred candidate, George Croom Robertson
, was appointed to the Chair in 1867.
Grote's will provided an endowment
of £6000 for the Chair of Philosophy of Mind and Logic, with the stipulation that the income could not be awarded to a holder of the Chair who was a minister of any religion. Instead, the income was to be held back and reinvested until a lay person was again appointed. Grote died in 1871 and in 1876, two years before her own death, his widow Harriet Grote
passed on the £6000 to the College.
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
.
Origin
Along with Moral PhilosophyEthics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
, Philosophy of Mind and Logic (originally called Logic and the Philosophy of the Human Mind) was one of two Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
chairs established at the founding of University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
. The first Mind and Logic professorship was awarded to John Hoppus
John Hoppus
Rev. John Hoppus LL.D., PH.D., F.R.S. , English Congregational minister, author, Fellow of the Royal Society, abolitionist and educational reformer, was appointed the first Chair of Logic and Philosophy of Mind at the newly formed London University , a position he secured and held against his...
, a Congregational minister, who held the position from 1830 to 1866. George Grote
George Grote
George Grote was an English classical historian, best known in the field for a major work, the voluminous History of Greece, still read.-Early life:He was born at Clay Hill near Beckenham in Kent...
, one of the College's founders and a member of its governing Council, objected to the appointment on the grounds that the College was intended to be non-sectarian and that therefore a Philosophy chair should not be held by a minister of religion. Because of this incident, Grote resigned from the Council in 1830. In 1866 Grote, who had returned to the Council in 1849, was instrumental in preventing the awarding of the Chair to James Martineau
James Martineau
James Martineau was an English religious philosopher influential in the history of Unitarianism. For 45 years he was Professor of Mental and Moral Philosophy and Political Economy in Manchester New College, the principal training college for British Unitarianism.-Early life:He was born in Norwich,...
, a Unitarian minister, for the same reasons. Grote's preferred candidate, George Croom Robertson
George Croom Robertson
George Croom Robertson was a Scottish philosopher.He was born in Aberdeen. In 1857 he gained a bursary at Marischal College, and graduated MA in 1861, with the highest honours in classics and philosophy. In the same year he won a Fergusson scholarship of £100 a year for two years, which enabled...
, was appointed to the Chair in 1867.
Grote's will provided an endowment
Financial endowment
A financial endowment is a transfer of money or property donated to an institution. The total value of an institution's investments is often referred to as the institution's endowment and is typically organized as a public charity, private foundation, or trust....
of £6000 for the Chair of Philosophy of Mind and Logic, with the stipulation that the income could not be awarded to a holder of the Chair who was a minister of any religion. Instead, the income was to be held back and reinvested until a lay person was again appointed. Grote died in 1871 and in 1876, two years before her own death, his widow Harriet Grote
Harriet Grote
Harriet Grote was an English biographer, and as wife to George Grote hostess to the English philosophical radicals of the earlier nineteenth century.-Early life:She was born Harriet Lewin at The Ridgeway, near Southampton, on 1 July 1792...
passed on the £6000 to the College.
Grote Professors of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic
- 1867-1892 George Croom RobertsonGeorge Croom RobertsonGeorge Croom Robertson was a Scottish philosopher.He was born in Aberdeen. In 1857 he gained a bursary at Marischal College, and graduated MA in 1861, with the highest honours in classics and philosophy. In the same year he won a Fergusson scholarship of £100 a year for two years, which enabled...
- 1892-1903 James SullyJames SullyJames Sully was an English psychologist.He was born at Bridgwater, and was educated at the Independent College, Taunton, the Regent's Park College, University of Göttingen, where he studied under Lotze, and at Humboldt University, Berlin where he studied under DuBois-Reymond and Helmholtz...
- 1903-1911 Carveth ReadCarveth ReadCarveth Read was a 19th and 20th century British philosopher and logician. He was Grote professor of philosophy of mind and logic at the University College London from 1903 to 1911.-Bibliography:...
- 1911-1928 Charles SpearmanCharles SpearmanCharles Edward Spearman, FRS was an English psychologist known for work in statistics, as a pioneer of factor analysis, and for Spearman's rank correlation coefficient...
- 1929-1944 John MacmurrayJohn MacmurrayJohn Macmurray MC was a Scottish philosopher. His thought moved beyond the modern tradition begun by Descartes and continued in Britain by Locke, Berkeley and Hume. He made contributions in the fields of political science, religion, and philosophy of education in a long career of writing,...
- 1944-1959 A.J. Ayer
- 1960-1963 Stuart HampshireStuart HampshireSir Stuart Newton Hampshire was an Oxford University philosopher, literary critic and university administrator. He was one of the antirationalist Oxford thinkers who gave a new direction to moral and political thought in the post-World War II era.Hampshire was educated at Repton School and at...
- 1963-1982 Richard WollheimRichard WollheimRichard Arthur Wollheim was a British philosopher noted for original work on mind and emotions, especially as related to the visual arts, specifically, painting...
- The Chair was vacant from 1982 to 1988
- 1988-1998 Ted HonderichTed HonderichTed Honderich is a Canadian-born British philosopher, Grote Professor Emeritus of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic, University College London and Visiting Professor, University of Bath...
- 1998-2001 Malcolm Budd
- 2001- Paul Snowdon