Stuart Hampshire
Encyclopedia
Sir Stuart Newton Hampshire (1 October 1914 – 13 June 2004) 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 Balliol College, Oxford
where he matriculated as a history
scholar. He did not confine himself to history, switching to the study of Greats
and immersing himself in the study of painting
and literature. As was the culture at Balliol, his intellectual development owed more to his gifted contemporaries than to academic tutors. Having taken a first class degree, in 1936 he was elected to a Fellowship of All Souls College, Oxford
, where he researched and taught philosophy
initially as an adherent of logical positivism
. He participated in an informal discussion group with some of the leading philosophers of his day, including J. L. Austin
and Isaiah Berlin
.
In 1940, at the outbreak of World War II
he enlisted in the army
and was given a commission. Due to his lack of physical aptitude was seconded to a position in military intelligence
near London
where he worked with Oxford colleagues such as Gilbert Ryle
and Hugh Trevor-Roper. His encounters as interrogator with Nazi
officers at the end of the war led to his insistence on the reality of evil
.
After the war, he worked for the government before resuming his career in philosophy. From 1947 through 1960, he taught at University College, London and was a fellow of New College, Oxford
. His noted study of Spinoza
published in 1951 is still widely considered the best introduction to that philosopher. In 1955, he returned to All Souls College, Oxford
as a resident fellow and became domestic bursar.
His innovative book Thought and Action (1959) attracted much attention, notably from his Oxford colleague Iris Murdoch
. It propounded an intentionalist theory of the philosophy of mind
taking account of developments in psychology
. Although he considered most continental philosophy vulgar and fraudulent, Hampshire was much influenced by Maurice Merleau-Ponty
. He insisted that philosophy of mind "has been distorted by philosophers when they think of persons only as passive observers and not as self-willed agents". In his subsequent books, Hampshire sought to shift moral philosophy from its focus on the logical properties of moral statements to what he considered the crucial question of moral problems as they present themselves to us as practical agents.
In 1960, Stuart Hampshire was elected a member of the British Academy
and became Grote Professor of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic
at University College London, succeeding A.J. Ayer
. His international reputation was growing and from 1963 to 1970 he chaired the department of philosophy at Princeton University
. In 1970, he returned to Oxford as Warden
of Wadham College, Oxford
. His liberal
and socialist
views were apparent when Wadham was in the first group of men-only Oxford colleges to admit women in 1974. Hampshire considered his wardenship to be one of his most significant achievements in reviving the fortunes of the college. He was knighted in 1979 and retired from Wadham in 1984, when he accepted a professorship at Stanford University
.
His last book, the thought-provoking and accessible Justice Is Conflict (1999), inaugurated the Princeton Monographs in Philosophy series. In this succinct work, he denies that harmony is achievable in moral and social issues. He demotes the role of rationally determined outcomes and stresses the need for debate in deciding these matters; only by trusting the mechanisms of justice can opposing sides accept the outcome peacefully.
Stuart Hampshire wrote extensively on literature and other topics for the Times Literary Supplement and the New York Review of Books amongst others. He was held in high esteem in British society. He was head of the literary panel of the Arts Council
for many years. In 1965–6, he was selected by the UK government to conduct a review of the effectiveness of GCHQ
.
He married his first wife, Renée Ayer, the former wife of the philosopher A. J. Ayer, in 1961. She died in 1980, and in 1985 he married Nancy Cartwright
, who was then his colleague at Stanford and is now Professor of Philosophy at the London School of Economics
and at the University of California, San Diego
.
Rationalism
In epistemology and in its modern sense, rationalism is "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification" . In more technical terms, it is a method or a theory "in which the criterion of the truth is not sensory but intellectual and deductive"...
Oxford thinkers who gave a new direction to moral and political thought in the post-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...
era.
Hampshire was educated at Repton School
Repton School
Repton School, founded in 1557, is a co-educational English independent school for both day and boarding pupils, in the British public school tradition, located in the village of Repton, in Derbyshire, in the Midlands area of England...
and at Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
where he matriculated as a history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
scholar. He did not confine himself to history, switching to the study of Greats
Literae Humaniores
Literae Humaniores is the name given to an undergraduate course focused on Classics at Oxford and some other universities.The Latin name means literally "more humane letters", but is perhaps better rendered as "Advanced Studies", since humaniores has the sense of "more refined" or "more learned",...
and immersing himself in the study of painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and literature. As was the culture at Balliol, his intellectual development owed more to his gifted contemporaries than to academic tutors. Having taken a first class degree, in 1936 he was elected to a Fellowship of All Souls College, Oxford
All Souls College, Oxford
The Warden and the College of the Souls of all Faithful People deceased in the University of Oxford or All Souls College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England....
, where he researched and taught 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...
initially as an adherent of logical positivism
Logical positivism
Logical positivism is a philosophy that combines empiricism—the idea that observational evidence is indispensable for knowledge—with a version of rationalism incorporating mathematical and logico-linguistic constructs and deductions of epistemology.It may be considered as a type of analytic...
. He participated in an informal discussion group with some of the leading philosophers of his day, including J. L. Austin
J. L. Austin
John Langshaw Austin was a British philosopher of language, born in Lancaster and educated at Shrewsbury School and Balliol College, Oxford University. Austin is widely associated with the concept of the speech act and the idea that speech is itself a form of action...
and Isaiah Berlin
Isaiah Berlin
Sir Isaiah Berlin OM, FBA was a British social and political theorist, philosopher and historian of ideas of Russian-Jewish origin, regarded as one of the leading thinkers of the twentieth century and a dominant liberal scholar of his generation...
.
In 1940, at the outbreak of 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...
he enlisted in the army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
and was given a commission. Due to his lack of physical aptitude was seconded to a position in military intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
near London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where he worked with Oxford colleagues such as Gilbert Ryle
Gilbert Ryle
Gilbert Ryle , was a British philosopher, a representative of the generation of British ordinary language philosophers that shared Wittgenstein's approach to philosophical problems, and is principally known for his critique of Cartesian dualism, for which he coined the phrase "the ghost in the...
and Hugh Trevor-Roper. His encounters as interrogator with Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
officers at the end of the war led to his insistence on the reality of evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
.
After the war, he worked for the government before resuming his career in philosophy. From 1947 through 1960, he taught at University College, London and was a fellow of New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
. His noted study of Spinoza
Baruch Spinoza
Baruch de Spinoza and later Benedict de Spinoza was a Dutch Jewish philosopher. Revealing considerable scientific aptitude, the breadth and importance of Spinoza's work was not fully realized until years after his death...
published in 1951 is still widely considered the best introduction to that philosopher. In 1955, he returned to All Souls College, Oxford
All Souls
All Souls may refer to:* All Souls' Day* All Souls College, Oxford* A church dedicated to All Souls, for example:** All Souls Church, Unitarian in Washington, DC** All Souls Church, Langham Place, London** Unitarian Church of All Souls, New York City...
as a resident fellow and became domestic bursar.
His innovative book Thought and Action (1959) attracted much attention, notably from his Oxford colleague Iris Murdoch
Iris Murdoch
Dame Iris Murdoch DBE was an Irish-born British author and philosopher, best known for her novels about political and social questions of good and evil, sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious...
. It propounded an intentionalist theory of the philosophy of mind
Philosophy of mind
Philosophy of mind is a branch of philosophy that studies the nature of the mind, mental events, mental functions, mental properties, consciousness and their relationship to the physical body, particularly the brain. The mind-body problem, i.e...
taking account of developments in psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
. Although he considered most continental philosophy vulgar and fraudulent, Hampshire was much influenced by Maurice Merleau-Ponty
Maurice Merleau-Ponty
Maurice Merleau-Ponty was a French phenomenological philosopher, strongly influenced by Karl Marx, Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger in addition to being closely associated with Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir...
. He insisted that philosophy of mind "has been distorted by philosophers when they think of persons only as passive observers and not as self-willed agents". In his subsequent books, Hampshire sought to shift moral philosophy from its focus on the logical properties of moral statements to what he considered the crucial question of moral problems as they present themselves to us as practical agents.
In 1960, Stuart Hampshire was elected a member of the British Academy
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
and became Grote Professor of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic
Grote Chair of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic
The Grote Chair of the Philosophy of Mind and Logic is an endowed chair at University College London.-Origin:Along with Moral Philosophy, Philosophy of Mind and Logic was one of two Philosophy chairs established at the founding of University College London...
at University College London, succeeding A.J. Ayer
Alfred Ayer
Sir Alfred Jules "Freddie" Ayer was a British philosopher known for his promotion of logical positivism, particularly in his books Language, Truth, and Logic and The Problem of Knowledge ....
. His international reputation was growing and from 1963 to 1970 he chaired the department of philosophy at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. In 1970, he returned to Oxford as Warden
Warden (college)
A warden is the head of some colleges and other educational institutions. This applies especially at some colleges and institutions at the University of Oxford:* All Souls College* Greyfriars* Keble College* Merton College* New College* Nuffield College...
of Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, located at the southern end of Parks Road in central Oxford. It was founded by Nicholas and Dorothy Wadham, wealthy Somerset landowners, during the reign of King James I...
. His liberal
Classical liberalism
Classical liberalism is the philosophy committed to the ideal of limited government, constitutionalism, rule of law, due process, and liberty of individuals including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and free markets....
and socialist
Democratic socialism
Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...
views were apparent when Wadham was in the first group of men-only Oxford colleges to admit women in 1974. Hampshire considered his wardenship to be one of his most significant achievements in reviving the fortunes of the college. He was knighted in 1979 and retired from Wadham in 1984, when he accepted a professorship at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
His last book, the thought-provoking and accessible Justice Is Conflict (1999), inaugurated the Princeton Monographs in Philosophy series. In this succinct work, he denies that harmony is achievable in moral and social issues. He demotes the role of rationally determined outcomes and stresses the need for debate in deciding these matters; only by trusting the mechanisms of justice can opposing sides accept the outcome peacefully.
Stuart Hampshire wrote extensively on literature and other topics for the Times Literary Supplement and the New York Review of Books amongst others. He was held in high esteem in British society. He was head of the literary panel of the Arts Council
Arts council
An arts council is a government or private, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing events at home and abroad...
for many years. In 1965–6, he was selected by the UK government to conduct a review of the effectiveness of GCHQ
Government Communications Headquarters
The Government Communications Headquarters is a British intelligence agency responsible for providing signals intelligence and information assurance to the UK government and armed forces...
.
He married his first wife, Renée Ayer, the former wife of the philosopher A. J. Ayer, in 1961. She died in 1980, and in 1985 he married Nancy Cartwright
Nancy Cartwright (philosopher)
Nancy Cartwright FBA is a professor of philosophy at the London School of Economics and the University of California at San Diego, and a recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship...
, who was then his colleague at Stanford and is now Professor of Philosophy at the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
and at the University of California, San Diego
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
.
Publications
- Age of Reason: The Seventeenth Century Philosophers (The Mentor PhilosophersThe Mentor PhilosophersThe Mentor Philosophers was a series of 6 books each covering a period of philosophical thought, published by the New American Library. Each book was edited by an esteemed contemporary philosophy academic and contained analysis of a group of philosophers from a chosen period.The series was very...
), 1956. - Spinoza and the Idea of Freedom, 1960.
- Feeling and expression (An inaugural lecture delivered at University College, London, 25 October 1960), 1962.
- Freedom of the Individual, 1965; revised edition, 1975.
- Thought and Action, 1970.
- Freedom of Mind and Other Essays, 1971.
- Knowledge and the Future (Gwilym James Memorial Lecture), 1976.
- Two Theories of Morality (Thank-offering to Britain Fund Lecture), 1977.
- Public and Private Morality, 1978.
- Morality and Conflict, 1987.
- Spinoza: An Introduction to His Philosophical Thought (Penguin Philosophy), 1988.
- Innocence and Experience, 1992.
- Justice is Conflict (Princeton Monographs in Philosophy), 2000
- Spinoza and Spinozism, 2005.