Howard Robinson (born 2 October 1945) is a British
philosopher, specialising in various areas of
philosophy of mind
Philosophy of mind is a branch of philosophy that studies the ontology and nature of the mind and its relationship with the body. The mind–body problem is a paradigmatic issue in philosophy of mind, although a number of other issues are add ...
and
metaphysics
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...
, best known for his work in the
philosophy of perception
The philosophy of perception is concerned with the nature of perceptual experience and the status of perceptual data, in particular how they relate to beliefs about, or knowledge of, the world.cf. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/perception-epi ...
. His contributions to philosophy include a defense of sense-datum theories of perception and a variety of arguments against physicalism about the mind. He published an alternative version of the popular
Knowledge Argument in his book ''Matter and Sense'' independently and in the same year as
Frank Jackson, but Robinson's thought experiment involves sounds rather than colors. He is Professor of Philosophy at
Central European University
Central European University (CEU) is a private research university accredited in Austria, Hungary, and the United States, with campuses in Vienna and Budapest. The university is known for its highly intensive programs in the social science ...
and recurring visiting professor at
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
.
Education and qualifications
Robinson received his early education at the
Manchester Grammar School
The Manchester Grammar School (MGS) in Manchester, England, is the largest independent school (UK), independent day school for boys in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1515 as a Grammar school#free tuition, free grammar school next to Manchester C ...
(1957–1964), going up to the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
to read
P.P.E. at
Corpus Christi College (where he earned an
Exhibition), graduating in 1967. He read for a research
M.Phil. at the
University of Nottingham
, mottoeng = A city is built on wisdom
, established = 1798 – teacher training college1881 – University College Nottingham1948 – university status
, type = Public
, chancellor ...
(1968–1968), and continued postgraduate research at Corpus Christi College (1968–1970). In 2000 he was awarded a
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
by the
University of Liverpool
, mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning
, established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...
for his published work (a "Staff Doctorate").
Positions held
After four years at
Oriel College, Oxford as full-time stipendiary lecturer in philosophy (1970–1974) he took up a lectureship at the University of Liverpool. He stayed at Liverpool for twenty-six years, becoming first Senior Lecturer then
reader
A reader is a person who reads. It may also refer to:
Computing and technology
* Adobe Reader (now Adobe Acrobat), a PDF reader
* Bible Reader for Palm, a discontinued PDA application
* A card reader, for extracting data from various forms of ...
, apart from a period as Soros Professor of Philosophy at
Eötvös Loránd University,
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
,
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
(1994–1996). In 2000 he was appointed Professor of Philosophy at the
Central European University
Central European University (CEU) is a private research university accredited in Austria, Hungary, and the United States, with campuses in Vienna and Budapest. The university is known for its highly intensive programs in the social science ...
in Hungary. In autumn 2012 he was Professor of Philosophy a
Rutgers University, New Brunswick He is currently Professor of Philosophy at
Central European University
Central European University (CEU) is a private research university accredited in Austria, Hungary, and the United States, with campuses in Vienna and Budapest. The university is known for its highly intensive programs in the social science ...
in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
and
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
and recurring visiting professor at
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
. He teaches graduate seminars on
philosophy of mind
Philosophy of mind is a branch of philosophy that studies the ontology and nature of the mind and its relationship with the body. The mind–body problem is a paradigmatic issue in philosophy of mind, although a number of other issues are add ...
and
philosophy of perception
The philosophy of perception is concerned with the nature of perceptual experience and the status of perceptual data, in particular how they relate to beliefs about, or knowledge of, the world.cf. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/perception-epi ...
at both institutions.
Since 1996 he has been a member of the East European committee of the
European Society for Analytic Philosophy The European Society for Analytic Philosophy (ESAP) is a philosophical organization founded by Kevin Mulligan, Barry Smith, Peter Simons, Pierre Jacob, Diego Marconi, Francois Recanati, Marco Santambrogio, Andreas Kemmerling and Pascal Engel in ...
(ESAP), since 1999 a member of the Steering Committee of ESAP, and since 2002 a member of the Senate of the Central European University.
Bibliography
Books
*1982: ''Matter and Sense: a Critique of Contemporary Materialism'', Cambridge Studies in Philosophy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
*1994: ''Perception'' (London: Routledge)
aperback 2001*2016: ''From the Knowledge Argument to Mental Substance: Resurrecting the Mind'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press)
;Edited collections
*1985: ''Essays on Berkeley: a Tercentennial Celebration'', co-edited with
John Foster (Oxford: Clarendon Press)
aperback 1988*1991: ''The Pursuit of Mind'', co-edited with
Raymond Tallis
Raymond C. Tallis (born 10 October 1946) is a philosopher, poet, novelist, cultural critic and a retired medical physician and clinical neuroscientist. Specialising in geriatrics, Tallis served on several UK commissions on medical care of the ...
(Manchester: Carcanet Press)
*1991: ''Aristotle and the Later Tradition'' (Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy, Supp. Vol. 2), co-edited with
Henry Blumenthal (Oxford: Clarendon Press)
*1993: ''Objections to Physicalism'' (Oxford: Clarendon Press)
aperback 1996*1996: Berkeley's ''Principles and Three Dialogues'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press)
Articles
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Howard
1945 births
English philosophers
Idealists
Living people
People educated at Manchester Grammar School
Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Alumni of the University of Nottingham
Academics of the University of Liverpool
Fellows of Oriel College, Oxford
Academic staff of Central European University
New Blackfriars people