Joseph Morton Ransdell
Encyclopedia
Joseph Morton Ransdell, was an associate professor of philosophy from 1974 to 2000 at Texas Tech University
in Lubbock
, Texas
. A native of Oklahoma City
, Oklahoma
, Ransdell in 1961 received his Bachelor of Arts
degree in philosophy from San Francisco State University
in San Francisco
, California
. He subsequently obtained his Ph.D.
in philosophy from Columbia University
in New York City
, where he wrote his dissertation on Peirce. Before coming to Texas Tech, Ransdell taught philosophy at the University of California, Santa Barbara
in Santa Barbara
and then spent a year in San Luis Potosi
, Mexico
, to write his book Pursuit of Wisdom. He wrote chiefly about Charles Sanders Peirce and his theory of representation. He was also interested in Socrates
and the Socratic Plato
. He was president of the Charles S. Peirce Society in 1999 and has been published in journals such as The Journal of Philosophy, Semiotica
, Ètudes Phénoménologiques, Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society (table of contents), and SEED Journal, and in various anthologies. (See Charles Sanders Peirce bibliography#Ransdell.).
Among Peirce scholars Ransdell is identified with the view that Peirce's views underwent development but not a radical shift, and that Peirce's 1867 "On a New List of Categories" is foundational for all of Peirce's subsequent philosophical work. On this see in particular Ransdell's "T. L. Short on Peirce's Semeiotic" in Transactions v. 43, n. 4, fall 2007 (Eprint).
Ransdell originated and maintained a large Website Arisbe: The Peirce Gateway and, since 1993, the peirce-l philosophical forum, with four hundred members from three dozen countries, for those interested in the Peirce philosophy.
Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University, often referred to as Texas Tech or TTU, is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and originally known as Texas Technological College, it is the leading institution of the Texas Tech University System and has the...
in Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. A native of Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City is the capital and the largest city in the state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's population, from the 2010 census, was 579,999, with a metro-area population of 1,252,987 . In 2010, the Oklahoma...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, Ransdell in 1961 received his Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in philosophy from San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...
in San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. He subsequently obtained his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in philosophy from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he wrote his dissertation on Peirce. Before coming to Texas Tech, Ransdell taught philosophy at the University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara, commonly known as UCSB or UC Santa Barbara, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus is located on a site in Goleta, California, from Santa Barbara and northwest of Los...
in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
and then spent a year in San Luis Potosi
San Luis Potosí, Mexico
San Luis Potosí, Mexico, may refer to:*The state of San Luis Potosí, one of the 32 component federal entities of the United Mexican States**San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí, capital city of that state...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, to write his book Pursuit of Wisdom. He wrote chiefly about Charles Sanders Peirce and his theory of representation. He was also interested in Socrates
Socrates
Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...
and the Socratic Plato
Plato
Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
. He was president of the Charles S. Peirce Society in 1999 and has been published in journals such as The Journal of Philosophy, Semiotica
Semiotica
Semiotica is an academic journal covering semiotics. It is the official journal of the International Association for Semiotic Studies.-Publication:Since 2000, the journal publishes five issues per year. It is published in English and French....
, Ètudes Phénoménologiques, Transactions of the Charles S. Peirce Society (table of contents), and SEED Journal, and in various anthologies. (See Charles Sanders Peirce bibliography#Ransdell.).
Among Peirce scholars Ransdell is identified with the view that Peirce's views underwent development but not a radical shift, and that Peirce's 1867 "On a New List of Categories" is foundational for all of Peirce's subsequent philosophical work. On this see in particular Ransdell's "T. L. Short on Peirce's Semeiotic" in Transactions v. 43, n. 4, fall 2007 (Eprint).
Ransdell originated and maintained a large Website Arisbe: The Peirce Gateway and, since 1993, the peirce-l philosophical forum, with four hundred members from three dozen countries, for those interested in the Peirce philosophy.