Marjorie Grene
Encyclopedia
Marjorie Glicksman Grene (December 13, 1910 – March 16, 2009) was an American
philosopher.
She wrote both on existentialism
and the philosophy of science
, especially the philosophy of biology
. She taught at the University of California at Davis from 1965 to 1978. From 1988 until her death she was Honorary University Distinguished Professor of philosophy
at Virginia Tech. She served as president of the Metaphysical Society of America
in 1976.
, from Wellesley College; she then received a doctorate in philosophy from Harvard University
(Radcliffe College
).
She studied with Martin Heidegger
and Karl Jaspers
, leaving Germany
in 1933. She was in Denmark
in 1935, and then at the University of Chicago
. After losing her position there during World War II
, she spent 15 years as a mother and farmer.
Her obituary in the New York Times said she was "one of the first philosophers to raise questions about the synthetic theory of evolution, which combines Darwin’s theory of evolution, Mendel’s understanding of genetic inheritance and more recent discoveries by molecular biologists." She, along with co-author David Depew, wrote the first history of the philosophy of biology. In 2002, she was the first female philosopher to have an edition of the Library of Living Philosophers
written about her.
In 1995 the International Society for History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Biology established a prize for young scholars in her name. The Society said her name was chosen because "not only does her work in the history and philosophy of biology exemplify the strong spirit of interdisciplinary work fundamental to (the Society), but she played a central role in bringing together diverse scholars of biology even before the formation of the Society."
, a classicist who also farmed in Illinois and in his native Ireland; besides farming, she also wrote, introducing English-speaking readers to the existentialists, though their philosophy drew from her the reaction, "Ugh." She and David had two children, Ruth Grene, a professor of plant physiology at Virginia Tech, and Nicholas Grene, Professor of English Literature at Trinity College, Dublin
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
philosopher.
She wrote both on existentialism
Existentialism
Existentialism is a term applied to a school of 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual...
and the philosophy of science
Philosophy of science
The philosophy of science is concerned with the assumptions, foundations, methods and implications of science. It is also concerned with the use and merit of science and sometimes overlaps metaphysics and epistemology by exploring whether scientific results are actually a study of truth...
, especially the philosophy of biology
Philosophy of biology
The philosophy of biology is a subfield of philosophy of science, which deals with epistemological, metaphysical, and ethical issues in the biological and biomedical sciences...
. She taught at the University of California at Davis from 1965 to 1978. From 1988 until her death she was Honorary University Distinguished Professor of 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...
at Virginia Tech. She served as president of the Metaphysical Society of America
Metaphysical Society of America
The Metaphysical Society of America is a philosophical organization founded by Paul Weiss in 1950 for promoting the study of metaphysics. The society is a member of the American Council of Learned Societies...
in 1976.
Life and career
Her first degree was in zoologyZoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
, from Wellesley College; she then received a doctorate in philosophy from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
(Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was the coordinate college for Harvard University. It was also one of the Seven Sisters colleges. Radcliffe College conferred joint Harvard-Radcliffe diplomas beginning in 1963 and a formal merger agreement with...
).
She studied with Martin Heidegger
Martin Heidegger
Martin Heidegger was a German philosopher known for his existential and phenomenological explorations of the "question of Being."...
and Karl Jaspers
Karl Jaspers
Karl Theodor Jaspers was a German psychiatrist and philosopher who had a strong influence on modern theology, psychiatry and philosophy. After being trained in and practicing psychiatry, Jaspers turned to philosophical inquiry and attempted to discover an innovative philosophical system...
, leaving Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1933. She was in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
in 1935, and then at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. After losing her position there during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, she spent 15 years as a mother and farmer.
Her obituary in the New York Times said she was "one of the first philosophers to raise questions about the synthetic theory of evolution, which combines Darwin’s theory of evolution, Mendel’s understanding of genetic inheritance and more recent discoveries by molecular biologists." She, along with co-author David Depew, wrote the first history of the philosophy of biology. In 2002, she was the first female philosopher to have an edition of the Library of Living Philosophers
Library of Living Philosophers
The Library of Living Philosophers is a series of books conceived of and started by Paul Arthur Schilpp in 1939; Schilpp remained editor until 1981. The series was edited by Lewis Edwin Hahn from 1981 until 2001, and is currently edited by Randall Auxier...
written about her.
In 1995 the International Society for History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Biology established a prize for young scholars in her name. The Society said her name was chosen because "not only does her work in the history and philosophy of biology exemplify the strong spirit of interdisciplinary work fundamental to (the Society), but she played a central role in bringing together diverse scholars of biology even before the formation of the Society."
Family
From 1938 to 1961, she was married to David GreneDavid Grene
David Grene was a professor of classics at the University of Chicago from 1937 until his death. He was a co-founder of the Committee on Social Thought and is best known for his translations of ancient Greek literature.-Life:...
, a classicist who also farmed in Illinois and in his native Ireland; besides farming, she also wrote, introducing English-speaking readers to the existentialists, though their philosophy drew from her the reaction, "Ugh." She and David had two children, Ruth Grene, a professor of plant physiology at Virginia Tech, and Nicholas Grene, Professor of English Literature at Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
.
Works
- Philosophers Speak for Themselves: From Descartes To Kant. Readings in the Philosophy of the Renaissance and Enlightenment (1940) editor with Thomas Vernor SmithThomas Vernor SmithThomas Vernor Smith , who wrote under the byline T. V. Smith, was an American philosopher, scholar, and politician from Illinois, as well as an officer in the United States Army.-Biography:...
- Dreadful Freedom: A Critique of Existentialism (1948)
- The World View of Physics by C. F. von Weizsäcker (1952) translator
- Martin Heidegger (1957)
- Philosophers Speak for Themselves: From Descartes to Locke (1958) editor with T. V. Smith
- Introduction to Existentialism (1959)
- A Portrait of Aristotle (1963)
- Philosophers Speak for Themselves: Berkeley, Hume and Kant (1963) editor with T. V. Smith
- The Knower and the Known (1966)
- Approaches to a Philosophical Biology (1968)
- The Anatomy of Knowledge: Papers Presented to the Study Group on Foundations of Cultural Unity, Bowdoin College, 1965 and 1966; (1969) editor
- Toward a Unity of Knowledge (1969) editor
- Laughing and Crying: A Study of the Limits of Human Behavior by Helmuth PlessnerHelmuth PlessnerHelmuth Plessner was a German philosopher and sociologist, and a primary advocate of "philosophical anthropology" .He was Chairman from 1953-1959 of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Soziologie....
(1970) translator with James Spencer Churchill - Interpretations of Life and Mind: Essays Around the Problem of Reduction (1971) editor
- Jean-Paul Sartre (1973)
- Spinoza : A Collection of Critical Essays (1973) editor
- The Understanding of Nature: Essays In The Philosophy Of Biology (1974)
- Philosophy In and Out of Europe (1976) essays
- Topics in the Philosophy of Biology (1976) editor with Everett Mendelsohn
- Dimensions Of Darwinism : Themes And Counterthemes In Twentieth-Century Evolutionary Theory (1983) editor
- Descartes (1985)
- Spinoza And The Sciences (1986) editor
- Muntu : African Culture and the Western World by Janheinz Jahn (1990) translator
- Descartes Among the Scholastics (1991) Aquinas Lecture 1991)
- Interactions. The Biological Context of Social Systems (1992) with Niles EldredgeNiles EldredgeNiles Eldredge is an American paleontologist, who, along with Stephen Jay Gould, proposed the theory of punctuated equilibrium in 1972.-Education:...
- A Philosophical Testament (1995)
- Descartes and His Contemporaries: Meditations, Objections, and Replies (1995) editor with Roger Ariew
- The Mechanization of the Heart: Harvey and Descartes by Thomas Fuchs (2001) translator
- Malebranche's First and Last Critics: Simon Foucher and Dortous De Mairan (2002) with Richard A. Watson;
- Apology for Raymond Sebond by Montaigne (2003) translator with Roger Ariew
- Philosophy of Biology: An Episodic History (2004) with David Depew
- Knowing & Being: essays by Michael PolanyiMichael PolanyiMichael Polanyi, FRS was a Hungarian–British polymath, who made important theoretical contributions to physical chemistry, economics, and the theory of knowledge...
, editor - Geoffroy Saint Hilaire by Hervé Le Guyader, translator
Further reading
- The Philosophy of Marjorie Grene (2002), edited by Randall E. Auxier and Lewis Edwin Hahn