Marjorie Glicksman Grene (December 13, 1910 – March 16, 2009) was an American philosopher. She wrote on

existentialism Existentialism ( ) is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on human thinking, feeling, and acting. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and valu ...

and the

philosophy of science Philosophy of science is a branch of philosophy concerned with the foundations, methods, and implications of science. The central questions of this study concern what qualifies as science, the reliability of scientific theories, and the ult ...

, especially the

philosophy of biology The philosophy of biology is a subfield of philosophy of science, which deals with epistemological, metaphysical, and ethical issues in the biological and biomedical sciences. Although philosophers of science and philosophers generally have long ...

. She taught at the

University of California at Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...

from 1965 to 1978. From 1988 until her death, she was Honorary University Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...

Life and career

Grene obtained her first degree, in

zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...

, from Wellesley College in 1931. She then obtained (from 1933–1935) an M.A. and then a doctorate in philosophy from Radcliffe College. This was, she said, "as close as females in those days got to Harvard". Grene studied with

Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th ce ...

and

Karl Jaspers Karl Theodor Jaspers (, ; 23 February 1883 – 26 February 1969) was a German-Swiss psychiatrist and philosopher who had a strong influence on modern theology, psychiatry, and philosophy. After being trained in and practicing psychiatry, Jaspe ...

, leaving

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in 1933. She was in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

in 1935, and then at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

. After losing her position there during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, she spent 15 years as a mother and farmer. She was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) 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, a ...

in 1976. Her ''New York Times'' obituary said Grene was "one of the first philosophers to raise questions about the synthetic theory of evolution, which combines Darwin's theory of evolution, Mendel's understanding of genetic inheritance and more recent discoveries by molecular biologists". Along with David Depew, she wrote the first history of the philosophy of biology. In 2002, she was the first female philosopher to have a volume of the ''

Library of Living Philosophers The ''Library of Living Philosophers'' is a series of books conceived of and started by Paul Arthur Schilpp in 1939; Schilpp remained editor until 1981. The series has since been edited by Lewis Edwin Hahn (1981–2001), Randall Auxier (2001–201 ...

'' devoted to her. In 1995, the

International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology The International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (ISHPSSB) is an international academic organization founded in 1989. It is the largest and most important meeting for the fields of philosophy of biology, hist ...

established a prize for young scholars in Grene's name, writing: "Not only does her work in the history and philosophy of biology exemplify the strong spirit of interdisciplinary work fundamental to the ISHPSSB, but she played a central role in bringing together diverse scholars of biology even before the formation of the Society."

Family

From 1938 to 1961, Grene was married to

David Grene David Grene (13 April 1913 – 10 September 2002) was an Irish American professor of classics at the University of Chicago from 1937 until his death. He was a co-founder of the Committee on Social Thought and is best known for his translations of ...

, a classicist who farmed in Illinois and in his native Ireland. They had two children, Ruth Grene, a professor of plant physiology at

, and Nicholas Grene, a professor of English literature at Trinity College, Dublin.

Works

Books authored *'' Dreadful Freedom: A Critique of Existentialism'' (1948) Reissued as '' Introduction to Existentialism'' (1959) *''

'' (1957) *'' A Portrait of Aristotle'' (1963) *'' The Knower and the Known'' (1966) *'' Approaches to a Philosophical Biology'' (1968) *''

Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and lite ...

'' (1973) *'' The Understanding of Nature: Essays In The Philosophy Of Biology '' (1974) *'' Philosophy In and Out of Europe'' (1976) essays *'' Descartes'' (1985) *''Descartes Among the Scholastics'' (1991) Aquinas Lecture 1991 *''Interactions. The Biological Context of Social Systems'' (1992) with

Niles Eldredge Niles Eldredge (; born August 25, 1943) is an American biologist and paleontologist, who, along with Stephen Jay Gould, proposed the theory of punctuated equilibrium in 1972. Education Eldredge began his undergraduate studies in Latin at Columb ...

*'' A Philosophical Testament'' (1995) *'' Philosophy of Biology: An Episodic History'' (2004) with David Depew Works edited and translated *''Philosophers Speak for Themselves: From Descartes To Kant. Readings in the Philosophy of the Renaissance and Enlightenment'' (1940) with Thomas Vernor Smith **Reissued in two volumes: '' Descartes to Locke'' (1958) and '' Berkeley, Hume, Kant'' (1963) *''The World View of Physics by C. F. von Weizsäcker'' (1952) translator *'' The Anatomy of Knowledge: Papers Presented to the Study Group on Foundations of Cultural Unity, Bowdoin College, 1965 and 1966; '' (1969) editor *'' Knowing & Being: essays by

Michael Polanyi Michael Polanyi (; hu, Polányi Mihály; 11 March 1891 – 22 February 1976) was a Hungarian-British polymath, who made important theoretical contributions to physical chemistry, economics, and philosophy. He argued that positivism supplies ...

'', (1969) editor *''Toward a Unity of Knowledge'' (1969) editor *''Laughing and Crying: A Study of the Limits of Human Behavior by

Helmuth Plessner Helmuth Plessner (4 September 1892, Wiesbaden – 12 June 1985, Göttingen) was a German philosopher and sociologist, and a primary advocate of "philosophical anthropology". Life & career Plessner had an itinerant education in Germany betwee ...

'' (1970) translator with James Spencer Churchill *''Interpretations of Life and Mind: Essays Around the Problem of Reduction'' (1971) editor *'' Spinoza : A Collection of Critical Essays'' (1973) editor *'' Topics in the Philosophy of Biology'' (1976) editor with Everett Mendelsohn *'' Dimensions Of Darwinism : Themes And Counterthemes In Twentieth-Century Evolutionary Theory'' (1983) editor *''Spinoza And The Sciences'' (1986) editor *''Muntu : African Culture and the Western World by Janheinz Jahn'' (1990) translator *''Descartes and His Contemporaries: Meditations, Objections, and Replies '' (1995) editor with Roger Ariew *''The Mechanization of the Heart: Harvey and Descartes by Thomas Fuchs'' (2001) translator *'' Malebranche's First and Last Critics: Simon Foucher and Dortous De Mairan'' (2002) with Richard A. Watson; translator *''Apology for Raymond Sebond by Montaigne'' (2003) translator with Roger Ariew *''Geoffroy Saint Hilaire by Hervé Le Guyader'' (2004) translator *For more complete details see "The Publications of Marjorie Grene" in her 1986

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 ...

''Human Nature and Natural Knowledge'' or Grene'
C.V.

References

External links

The philosophy of Marjorie Grene
2003 profile by Sally Harris for ''Virginia Tech Magazine'' (Archived by Wayback Machine)
An Interview with Marjorie Grene
2005 article by Benjamin Cohen for '' The Believer'' magazine. (Archived by

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by the Internet Archive, a nonprofit based in San Francisco, California. Created in 1996 and launched to the public in 2001, it allows the user to go "back in time" and see ...

)
IN MEMORIAM - Marjorie Glicksman Grene
from the

University Of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Franci ...

.
In Memoriam: Marjorie Grene
from ''Virginia Tech Daily'' (Archived by Wayback Machine)

eulogy by Richard Burian and Roger Ariew for ''Isis''. (Archived by Wayback Machine) {{DEFAULTSORT:Grene, Marjorie Jewish American writers Jewish philosophers Writers from Virginia Virginia Tech faculty University of Chicago faculty Wellesley College alumni Radcliffe College alumni Presidents of the Metaphysical Society of America 1910 births 2009 deaths Writers from Chicago Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences American women philosophers Existentialists Philosophers of science 20th-century American philosophers 20th-century American women writers American women non-fiction writers 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women Philosophers of biology Distinguished professors of philosophy

Life and career

Family

Works

See also

References

Further reading

External links