英语故事William James.docx

英语故事William James.docx

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英语故事WilliamJames

英语故事

WilliamJames

威廉·詹姆斯，美国心理学之父。

美国本土第一位哲学家和心理学家，也是教育学家，实用主义的倡导者，美国机能主义心理学派创始人之一，也是美国最早的实验心理学家之一。

WilliamJames

WilliamJames（January11,1842–August26,1910）wasapioneeringAmericanpsychologistandphilosopherwhoweretrainedasamedicaldoctor.Hewroteinfluentialbooksontheyoungscienceofpsychology,educationalpsychology,psychologyofreligiousexperienceandmysticism,andonthephilosophyofpragmatism.HewasthebrotherofnovelistHenryJamesandofDiaristAliceJames.

WilliamJameswasbornattheAstorHouseinNewYorkCity.HewasthesonofHenryJamesSr.,anindependentlywealthyandnotoriouslyeccentricSwedenborgiantheologianwellacquaintedwiththeliteraryandintellectualelitesofhisday.TheintellectualbrillianceoftheJamesfamilymilieuandtheremarkableepistolarytalentsofseveralofitsmembershavemadethemasubjectofcontinuinginteresttohistorians,biographers,andcritics.

Jamesinteractedwithawidearrayofwritersandscholarsthroughouthislife,includinghisgodfatherRalphWaldoEmerson,hisgodsonWilliamJamesSidis,aswellasCharlesSandersPeirce,BertrandRussell,JosiahRoyce,ErnstMach,JohnDewey,WalterLippmann,MarkTwain,HoratioAlger,Jr.,HenriBergsonandSigmundFreud.

Earlyyears

WilliamJames,withhisyoungerbrotherHenryJames（whobecameaprominentnovelist）andsisterAliceJames（whoisknownforherposthumouslypublisheddiary）,receivedaneclectictrans-Atlanticeducation,developingfluencyinbothGermanandFrenchlanguagesalongwithacosmopolitancharacter.HisfamilymadetwotripstoEuropewhilehewasstillachild,settingapatternthatresultedinthirteenmoreEuropeanjourneysduringhislife.HisearlyartisticbentledtoanapprenticeshipinthestudioofWilliamMorrishuntinNewport,RhodeIsland,butheswitchedin1861toscientificstudiesattheLawrencescientificschoolofHarvarduniversity.

Inhisearlyadulthood,Jamessufferedfromavarietyofphysicalailments,includingthoseoftheeyes,back,stomach,andskin.Hewasalsotonedeaf.Hewassubjecttovarietyofpsychologicalsymptomswhichwerediagnosedatthetimeasneurasthenia,andwhichincludedperiodsofdepressionduringwhichhecontemplatedsuicideformonthsonend.Twoyoungerbrothers,GarthWilkinson（Wilky）andRobertson（Bob）,foughtinthecivilwar.Theotherthreesiblings（William,Henry,andAlice）allsufferedfromperiodsofinvalidism.

JamestookupmedicalstudiesatHarvardmedicalschoolin1864.AtHarvardhewasinspiredtostudytheology.Hetookabreakinthespringof1865tojoinnaturalistLouisAgassizonascientificexpeditionuptheAmazonRiver,butabortedhistripaftereightmonths,ashesufferedboutsofsevereseasicknessandmildsmallpox.HisstudieswereinterruptedonceagainduetoillnessinApril1867.HetraveledtoGermanyinsearchofacureandremaineduntilNovember1868.（Duringthisperiodhebegantopublish,withreviewsappearinginliteraryperiodicalsliketheNorthAmericanreview.）HefinallyearnedhisM.D.degreeinJune1869,butneverpracticedmedicine.Whathecalledhis“soul-sickness”wouldonlyberesolvedin1872,afteranextendedperiodofphilosophicalsearching.HemarriedAliceGibbensin1878.

James’stimeinGermanyprovedintellectuallyfertile,helpinghimfindthathistrueinterestslaynotinmedicinebutinphilosophyandpsychology.Later,in1902hewouldwrite:

“Ioriginallystudiedmedicineinordertobeaphysiologist,butIdriftedintopsychologyandphilosophyfromasortoffatality.Ineverhadanyphilosophicinstruction,thefirstlectureonpsychologyIeverheardbeingthefirstIevergave”

Career

JamesspentalmosthisentireacademiccareeratHarvard.Hewasappointedinstructorinphysiologyforthespring1873term,instructorinanatomyandphysiologyin1873,assistantprofessorofpsychologyin1876,assistantprofessorofphilosophyin1881,fullprofessorin1885,endowedchairinpsychologyin1889,returntophilosophyin1897,andemeritusprofessorofphilosophyin1907.

Jamesstudiedmedicine,physiology,andbiology,andbegantoteachinthosesubjects,butwasdrawntothescientificstudyofthehumanmindatatimewhenpsychologyconstituteditselfasascience.James’sacquaintancewiththeworkoffigureslikesHermannHelmholtzinGermanyandPierreJanetinFrancefacilitatedhisintroductionofcoursesinscientificpsychologyatHarvardUniversity.HetaughthisfirstexperimentalpsychologycourseatHarvardinthe1875-1876academicyears.

DuringhisHarvardyears,JamesjoinedinphilosophicaldiscussionswithCharlesPeirce,OliverWendellHolmes,andChaunceyWrightthatevolvedintoalivelygroupknownasthemetaphysicalclubin1872.LouisMenandspeculatesthattheclubprovidedafoundationforAmericanintellectualthoughtfordecadestocome.

AmongJames’sstudentsatHarvardweresuchluminariesasBorisSidis,TheodoreRoosevelt,GeorgeSantayana,W.E.B.DuBois,G.StanleyHall,RalphBartonPerry,GertrudeStein,HoraceKallen,MorrisRaphaelCohen,WalterLippmann,AlainLocke,C.I.Lewis,andMaryCalkins.

FollowinghisJanuary,1907retirementfromHarvard,Jamescontinuedtowriteandlecture,publishingpragmatism,apluralisticuniverse,andthemeaningoftruth.Jameswasincreasinglyafflictedwithcardiacpainduringhislastyears.Itworsenedin1909whileheworkedonaphilosophytext（unfinishedbutposthumouslypublishedassomeproblemsinphilosophy）.HesailedtoEuropeinthespringof1910totakeexperimentaltreatmentswhichprovedunsuccessful,andreturnedhomeonaugust18.Hisheartfailedhimonaugust26,1910athishomeinChocorua,NewHampshire.HewasburiedinthefamilyplotinCambridgecemetery,Cambridge,Massachusetts.

Hewasoneofthestrongestproponentsoftheschooloffunctionalisminpsychologyandofpragmatisminphilosophy.HewasafounderoftheAmericansocietyforpsychicalresearch,aswellasachampionofalternativeapproachestohealing.Hechallengedhisprofessionalcolleaguesnottoletanarrowmindsetpreventanhonestappraisalofthosephenomena.

InanempiricalstudybyHaggbloometal.usingsixcriteriasuchascitationsandrecognition,Jameswasfoundtobethe14thmosteminentpsychologistofthe20thcentury.

Epistemology

Jamesdefinedtruebeliefsasthosethatproveusefultothebeliever.Hispragmatictheoryoftruthwasasynthesisofcorrespondencetheoryoftruthandcoherencetheoryoftruth,withanaddeddimension.Truthisverifiabletotheextentthatthoughtsandstatementscorrespondwithactualthings,aswellastheextenttowhichthey“hangtogether,”orcohere,aspiecesofapuzzlemightfittogether;theseareinturnverifiedbytheobservedresultsoftheapplicationofanideatoactualpractice.

“Themostancientpartsoftruth…Alsooncewereplastic.Theyalsowerecalledtrueforhumanreasons.Theyalsomediatedbetweenstillearliertruthsandwhatinthosedayswerenovelobservations.Purelyobjectivetruth,truthinwhoseestablishmentthefunctionofgivinghumansatisfactioninmarryingpreviouspartsofexperiencewithnewerpartsplayednorolewhatsoever,isnowheretobefound.thereasonswhywecallthingstrueisthereasonwhytheyaretrue,for‘tobetrue’meansonlytoperformthismarriage-function,”hewrote.

Jamesheldaworldviewinlinewithpragmatism,declaringthatthevalueofanytruthwasutterlydependentuponitsusetothepersonwhoheldit.additionaltenetsofJames’spragmatismincludetheviewthattheworldisamosaicofdiverseexperiencesthatcanonlybeproperlyinterpretedandunderstoodthroughanapplicationof“radicalempiricism.”radicalempiricism,notrelatedtotheeverydayscientificempiricism,assertsthattheworldandexperiencecanneverbehaltedforanentirelyobjectiveanalysis,ifnothingelsethemindoftheobserverandsimpleactofobservationwillaffecttheoutcomeofanyempiricalapproachtotruthasthemindanditsexperiences,andnatureareinseparable.James’semphasisondiversityasthedefaulthumancondition—overandagainstduality,especiallyHegeliandialecticalduality—hasmaintainedastronginfluenceinAmericanculture,especiallyamongliberals.James’sdescriptionofthemind-worldconnection,whichhedescribedintermsofa“streamofconsciousness（psychology）,”hadadirectandsignificantimpactonavant-gardeandmodernistliteratureandart.

Inwhatpragmatismmeans,Jameswritesthatthecentralpointofhisowndoctrineoftruthis,inbrief,that“truthsemergefromfacts,buttheydipforwardintofactsagainandaddtothem;whichfactsagaincreateorrevealnewtruth（thewordisindifferent）andsoonindefinitely.the‘facts’themselvesmeanwhilearenottrue.Theysimplyare.Truthisthefunctionofthebeliefsthatstartandterminateamongthem.”RichardRortyclaimsthatJamesdidnotmeantogiveatheoryoftruthwiththisstatementandthatweshouldnotregarditassuch.However,otherpragmatismscholarssuchasSusanHaackandHowardMouncedonotshareRorty’sinstrumentalistinterpretationofJames.

Inthemeaningoftruth,Jamesseemstospeakoftruthinrelativisticterms:

“thecritic’strouble...seemstocomefromhistakingtheword‘true’irrelatively,whereasthepragmatistalwaysmeans‘trueforhimwhoexperiencestheworkings.’“However,Jamesrespondedtocriticsaccusinghimofrelativism,scepticismoragnosticism,andofbelievingonlyinrelativetruths.Tothecontrary,hesupportedanepistemologicalrealismposition

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