Sidney Morgenbesser

Sidney Morgenbesser (September 22, 1921 – August 1, 2004) was a philosopher and professor at Columbia University.[1][2][3]

Biography

Born in New York City, Morgenbesser undertook philosophical study at the City College of New York and rabbinical study at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, then pursued graduate study in philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania, where he wrote his Ph.D. thesis under the direction of Nelson Goodman. Morgenbesser began teaching at Swarthmore College, took a position at Columbia in 1953 and, in 1975, was named the John Dewey Professor of Philosophy there, a position he held until his retirement in 1993. Morgenbesser was known particularly for his sharp witticisms and humor, which often penetrated to the heart of the philosophical issue at hand and earned him the nickname from The New York Times as "the Sidewalk Socrates."[4]

He published little, and established no school, but was revered for his extraordinary intelligence and moral seriousness. He was a famously influential teacher; his former students include Jerry Fodor, Raymond Geuss, Alvin Goldman, Daniel Hausman, Robert Nozick, Derek Parfit, and Gideon Rosen. In 1967, Morgenbesser signed a letter declaring his intention to refuse to pay taxes in protest against the U.S. war in Vietnam, and urging other people to also take this stand.[5] Morgenbesser's areas of expertise included the philosophy of social science, political philosophy, epistemology, and the history of American Pragmatism. He founded the Society for Philosophy and Public Affairs along with G.A. Cohen, Thomas Nagel and others.[6] He was a Guggenheim Fellow in 1963.

He died in New York City.

Quotations

"Why is God making me suffer so much? Just because I don’t believe in him?"[7]

Books

See also

References

  1. ↑ The Independent, The Independent, Professor Sidney Morgenbesser: Philosopher celebrated for his withering New York Jewish humour, 6 August 2004
  2. ↑ The Times, Sidney Morgenbesser: Erudite and influential American linguistic philosopher with the analytical acuity of Spinoza and the blunt wit of Groucho Marx, September 8, 2004
  3. ↑ Martin, Douglas (4 August 2004). "Sidney Morgenbesser, 82, Kibitzing Philosopher, Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  4. ↑ Ryerson, James (26 December 2004). "Sidewalk Socrates". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  5. ↑ “An Open Letter” archived at Horowitz Transaction Publishers Archive
  6. ↑ Virginia Held; Sidney Morgenbesser; Thomas Nagel; Society for Philosophy and Public Affairs (1974). Philosophy, morality, and international affairs: essays edited for the Society for Philosophy and Public Affairs. Oxford University Press. Cite uses deprecated parameter |coauthors= (help)
  7. ↑ "Battling the Gods: Atheism in the Ancient World" by Tim Whitmarsh, Review by Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, 20 November 2015, New York Times.

External links

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