William James (1842–1910) is widely regarded as the founding figure of modern psychology and one of the most important philosophers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Renowned for his philosophical theory of pragmatism and memorable turns of phrase, such as ‘stream of consciousness’ and the ‘will to believe’, he made enormous contributions to a rich array of philosophical subjects, from the emotions and free will to religion, ethics, and the meaning of life.
The Jamesian Mind covers the major aspects of James’s thought, from his early influences to his legacy, with over forty chapters by an outstanding roster of international contributors. It is organized into seven parts:
- Intellectual Biography
- Psychology, Mind, and Self
- Ethics, Religion, and Politics
- Method, Truth, and Knowledge
- Philosophical Encounters
- Legacy.
In these sections fundamental topics are examined, including James’s conceptions of philosophical and scientific inquiry, habit, self, free will and determinism, pragmatism, truth, and pluralism. Considerable attention is also devoted to James in relation to the intellectual traditions of empiricism and Romanticism as well as to such other philosophical schools as utilitarianism, British idealism, Logical Empiricism, and existentialism. James’s thought is also situated in an interdisciplinary context, including modernism, sociology, and politics, showcasing his legacy in psychology and ethics.
An indispensable resource for anyone studying and researching James’s philosophy, The Jamesian Mind will also interest those in related disciplines such as psychology, religion, and sociology.
William James: a philosopher without theories Sarin Marchetti
Part I: Intellectual biography
1. William James: a sketch Linda Simon
2. Young William James, almost a philosopher Paul J. Croce
Part II: Psychology, mind, and self
3. The psychological roots of William James’s thought David E. Leary
4. The evolutionary logic of freedom Lucas McGranahan
5. William James on emotion: physiology and/as spirituality Shannon Sullivan
6. Only across and beyond: reasoning about space in The Principles of Philosophy and The Turn of the Screw Paul Grimstad
7. The self in James’s Principles Tito Magri
8. James on personal identity Carol Rovane
9. James’s rejection of the unconscious: a fallacious disawoval? Vincent Colapietro
10. James and psychical research: a closer look Ermine L. Algaier IV
Part III: Ethics, religion, and politics
11. On willing to believe Scott F. Aikin
12. Pragmatist moral philosophy and moral life: embracing the tensions Todd Lekan
13. James and the ethical importance of grace Megan Craig
14. The ethical consequences of interests Matteo Santarelli
15. William James on religion as effort, surrender, and power Wayne Proudfoot
16. Faith, theology, and human nature Jeremy Carrette
17. Strenous citizenship: William James and political action David Rondel
18. James’s political consciousness Trygve Throntveit
19. The gospel of heroism Ramón del Castillo
Part IV: Method, truth, and knowledge
20. Pragmatism as a temper: William James and the idea of philosophy Stéphane Madelrieux
21. Emotion, experience, and philosophical truth in early James Logi Gunnarsson
22. James’s pragmatic maxim and the "elasticity" of meaning Henry Jackman
23. William James’s psychology of truth Harvey Cormier
24. Sense and common sense in William James Anna Boncompagni
25. William James’s pluralisms Russell B. Goodman
26. James's radicalization of empiricism Michela Bella
Part V: Philosophical encounters
27. James and the 'East': Buddhism and Japan David Scott
28. James and the ancient world: pragmatism, stoicism, and the rhetoric of resilience Scott R. Stroud and Clayton L. Terry
29. Around or through Kant? Kantian transcendental pessimism and Jamesian empirical meliorism Sami Pihlström
30. William James, Romanticism, and the "humanistic principle" Ulf Schulenberg
31. James, British empiricism, and the legacy of utilitarianism Piers H. G. Stephens
32. "The moral earth, too, is round": James and Nietzsche on the aim of philosophy Rachel Cristy
33. Radical empiricism, British idealism, and the reality of relations Neil W. Williams
34. James, verificationism, and Logical Empiricism Massimo Ferrari
35. James and Heidegger on truth Mark Okrent
36. The will to believe in one’s true being: love and God for William James and Gabriel Marcel John R. Shook
37. Learning from correct blindness: James in dialogue with Cavell Naoko Saito
38. The legacy of James within Putnam’s philosophy Rosa M. Calcaterra
Part VI: Legacy
39. William James and the quest for meaningful measurement James O. Pawelski and David Bryce Yaden
40. William James and the scientific mindset Martin Halliwell
41. A self properly embodied: William James and 4E cognition Michele Di Francesco, Massimo Marraffa, and Alfredo Paternoster
42. Jamesian Feminism in a time of polarization Erin C. Tarver
43. James and bioethics: how moral obligations arise from desires, and how that matters to healthcare decision-making D. Micah Hester
44. Do we love the creatures of the future enough? William James's strenuous mood and the environmental crisis James M. Albrecht
Index
Biography
Sarin Marchetti is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Sapienza Università di Roma, Italy. He is the author of Ethics and Philosophical Critique in William James (2015) and James (2021), and co-editor of Facts and Values: The Ethics and Metaphysics of Normativity (Routledge 2016, with G. Marchetti) and Pragmatism and the European Traditions: Encounters with Analytic Philosophy and Phenomenology Before the Great Divide (Routledge 2017, with M. Baghramian).
"Pluralism was an essential part of William James’s philosophical perspective, and the essays in this volume wonderfully live up to this ideal. They range widely, and expertly, over his psychology, philosophy, social theory, and life. Few stones are left unturned. Readers, both new and well-acquainted with James, will delight in this volume’s breadth and depth." - George B. Cotkin, California Polytechnic State University, USA
