Jonathan Francis Bennett (17 February 1930 – 31 March 2024) was a philosopher of

language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

and

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...

, specialist of

Kant Immanuel Kant (born Emanuel Kant; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German philosopher and one of the central Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works in epistemology, metaphysics, et ...

's philosophy and a historian of

early modern philosophy Early modern philosophy (also classical modern philosophy) Richard Schacht, ''Classical Modern Philosophers: Descartes to Kant'', Routledge, 2013, p. 1: "Seven men have come to stand out from all of their counterparts in what has come to be known ...

. He had New Zealand citizenship by birth and later acquired UK and Canadian citizenship.

Life and education

Jonathan Bennett was born in

Greymouth Greymouth () (Māori language, Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast, New Zealand, West Coast List of regions in New Zealand, region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The populat ...

, New Zealand, to Francis Oswald Bennett and Pearl Allan Brash Bennett. His father was a doctor and his mother a homemaker. He read philosophy at the

University of Canterbury The University of Canterbury (UC; ; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1873 as Canterbur ...

(formerly Canterbury University College) and was awarded his M.A. there in 1953. He then went to the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

where he was a member of

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and ...

. He obtained his BPhil in 1955.

Career

Bennett's first academic post was as a junior lecturer at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

(then Auckland University College), New Zealand (1952). He was an instructor in philosophy at

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...

(Pennsylvania) (1955–56), then a lecturer in moral science (philosophy) at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

(1956–68), then at

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a Public university, public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It maintains three campuses in Greater Vancouver, respectively located in Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, British Columbia, Surrey, and ...

(1968–70), the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

(1970–79), and in 1979 he went to

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

as professor of philosophy. He remained in this position until his retirement in 1997. In 1980, he was the Tanner Lecturer at

Brasenose College Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the m ...

of the

. His lectures were refined and published in his 1995 book ''The Act Itself''. In this work, he argues that letting someone die is as immoral as killing someone. This also applies to other harms that one commits or fails to prevent. This view has been widely discussed, for example by Judith Jarvis Thomson. In 1992, he was the John Locke Lecturer at the University of Oxford, giving lectures on 'Judging Behaviour: Analysis in Moral Theory'. In 1985, he was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

. The

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

extended him the same honour in 1991. In the same year he was awarded a LittD from the University of Cambridge. Bennett wrote extensively on

philosophy of mind Philosophy of mind is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of the mind and its relation to the Body (biology), body and the Reality, external world. The mind–body problem is a paradigmatic issue in philosophy of mind, although a ...

philosophy of language Philosophy of language refers to the philosophical study of the nature of language. It investigates the relationship between language, language users, and the world. Investigations may include inquiry into the nature of Meaning (philosophy), me ...

, events, conditionals, and consequentialist ethics. He was renowned for his interpretations of major early modern philosophers and wrote five books in this area. A

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

to commemorate his 60th birthday was published in 1990. Bennett's website was devoted to making the texts of early modern philosophers more accessible to today's students. Bennett died aged 94 on 31 March 2024.

Bibliography

Books * 1989 (1964). ''Rationality''. Hackett. * 1966. ''Kant's Analytic''. Cambridge University Press. * 1971. ''Locke, Berkeley, Hume: Central Themes''. Oxford University Press. * 1974. ''Kant’s Dialectic''. Cambridge University Press. * 1990 (1976). ''Linguistic Behaviour''. Hackett. * 1984. ''A Study of Spinoza’s Ethics''. Hackett. * 1988. ''Events and Their Names''. Hackett. * 1995. ''The Act Itself''. Oxford University Press. * 2001. ''Learning from Six Philosophers''. Oxford University Press. * 2003. ''A Philosophical Guide to Conditionals''. Oxford University Press. Selected journal articles * 1954. 'Meaning and Implication', ''

Mind The mind is that which thinks, feels, perceives, imagines, remembers, and wills. It covers the totality of mental phenomena, including both conscious processes, through which an individual is aware of external and internal circumstances ...

'', 63, pp. 451–63. * 1965. 'Substance, Reality and Primary Qualities', '' American Philosophical Quarterly'', 2, pp. 1–17. * 1988. 'Thoughtful Brutes', ''Proceedings of the American Philosophical Association'', 62 pp. 197–210. * 1993. 'Negation and Abstention: Two theories of Allowing', ''

Ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

'', 104, pp. 75–96.

References

External links

Early Modern Texts
Translations by Bennett of philosophical classics of the English language into contemporary English. Also works in Latin, French and German. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Jonathan 1930 births 2024 deaths 20th-century British philosophers British historians of philosophy 20th-century New Zealand philosophers Philosophers of language Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Philosophy academics at the University of Cambridge Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences People from Greymouth Academic staff of Simon Fraser University Syracuse University faculty Academic staff of the University of British Columbia Spinoza scholars University of Canterbury alumni