Ralph Barton Perry (July 3, 1876 – January 22, 1957) was an American

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

. He was a strident

moral idealist Ethical idealism, which is also referred to by terms such as moral idealism, principled idealism, and other expressions, is a philosophical framework based on holding onto specifically defined ideals in the context of facing various consequen ...

who stated in 1909 that, to him, idealism meant "to interpret life consistently with

ethical Ethics is the philosophical study of moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches include normative ethics, applied e ...

, scientific, and

metaphysical 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 h ...

truth." Perry's viewpoints on religion stressed the notion that religious thinking possessed legitimacy should it exist within a framework accepting of

human reason Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing valid conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, religion, scien ...

and

social progress Progress is movement towards a perceived refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. It is central to the philosophy of progressivism, which interprets progress as the set of advancements in technology, science, and social organization effic ...

Biography

Ralph Barton Perry was born in

Poultney, Vermont Poultney is a town in Rutland County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Vermont. New York state is on its western border. Castleton, Vermont, is on its northern border. Poultney was home to Green Mountain College, a private liberal ar ...

on July 3, 1876. He was educated at

Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...

(

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

, 1896) and at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

( M.A., 1897; Ph.D., 1899), where, after teaching philosophy for three years at Williams and

Smith Smith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England ** List of people ...

colleges, he was instructor (1902–05), assistant professor (1905–13), full

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

(1913–30) and Edgar Pierce Professor of Philosophy (1930–46). He was president of the

American Philosophical Association The American Philosophical Association (APA) is the main professional organization for philosophers in the United States. Founded in 1900, its mission is to promote the exchange of ideas among philosophers, to encourage creative and scholarl ...

's eastern division in 1920–21. He was elected to 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 ...

in 1928 and the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

in 1939. A pupil of

William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher and psychologist. The first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States, he is considered to be one of the leading thinkers of the late 19th c ...

, whose ''

Essays in Radical Empiricism ''Essays in Radical Empiricism'' (''ERE'') by William James is a collection edited and published posthumously by his colleague and biographer Ralph Barton Perry in 1912. It was assembled from ten out of a collection of twelve reprinted journal a ...

'' he edited (1912), Perry became one of the leaders of the

New Realism New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 19 ...

movement. Perry argued for a naturalistic theory of value and a New Realist theory of

perception Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous syste ...

and knowledge. He wrote a celebrated biography of

, which won the 1936

Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography The Pulitzer Prize for Biography is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. The award honors "a distinguished and appropriately documented biography by an American author." Award winners receive ...

, and proceeded to a revision of his critical approach to natural knowledge. An active member among a group of American New Realist philosophers, he elaborated around 1910 the program of new realism. However, he soon dissented from moral and spiritual

ontology Ontology is the philosophical study of existence, being. It is traditionally understood as the subdiscipline of metaphysics focused on the most general features of reality. As one of the most fundamental concepts, being encompasses all of realit ...

, and turned to a philosophy of disillusionment. Perry was an advocate of a

militant democracy Defensive democracy is a term referring to the collection of laws, delegated legislation, and court rulings which limit certain rights and freedoms in a democratic society in order to protect the existence of the state, its democratic character ...

: in his words "total but not

totalitarian Totalitarianism is a political system and a form of government that prohibits opposition from political parties, disregards and outlaws the political claims of individual and group opposition to the state, and completely controls the public sph ...

". ''Puritanism and Democracy'' (1944) is a famous wartime attempt to reconcile two fundamental concepts in the origins of modern America. Between 1946 and 1948, he delivered in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

his

Gifford Lectures The Gifford Lectures () are an annual series of lectures which were established in 1887 by the will of Adam Gifford, Lord Gifford at the four ancient universities of Scotland: St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Their purpose is to "pro ...

, titled ''Realms of Value''. He married Rachel Berenson on August 15, 1905, and they lived in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

. Their son was Edward Barton Perry born at their home 5 Avon Street in Cambridge, September 27, 1906. In 1932, Edward married Harriet Armington Seelye (born

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Massachusetts, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the list of United States cities by population, 113th most populous city in the United States. Named after Worcester ...

, May 28, 1909), daughter of physician and surgeon Dr. Walker Clarke Seelye of Worcester and Annie Ide Barrows Seelye, formerly of

Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...

. In 1919, he gave the commencement address for the first graduating class of

Connecticut College Connecticut College (Conn) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in New London, Connecticut. Originally chartered as Thames College, it was founded in 1911 as the state's only women's colle ...

, which had opened its doors in 1915. Perry died at his home in Cambridge on January 22, 1957, and was buried at

Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Cemetery, located in Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, is the first rural or garden cemetery in the United States. It is the burial site of many prominent Boston Brahmins, and is a National Historic Landmark. Dedicated in ...

Selected publications

* ''The Approach to Philosophy'', (1905), New York, Chicago and Boston: Charles Scribner's Sons
''The Moral Economy''
(1909), New York: Charles Scribner's Son * ''Present Philosophical Tendencies: A Critical Survey of Naturalism, Idealism, Pragmatism, and Realism, together with a Synopsis of the Philosophy of William James'', (1912), New York:Longmans, Green & Co. * Holt, EB; Marvin, WT; Montague, WP; Perry, RB; Pitkin, WB; Spaulding, EG, ''The New Realism: Cooperative Studies in Philosophy'', (1912), New York: The Macmillan Company * ''The Free Man and the Soldier'', (1916), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons
''The Present Conflict of Ideals: A Study of the Philosophical Background of the World War''
(1918), New York: Longmans, Green & Co. * ''Annotated Bibliography of the Writings of William James'', (1920), Longmans, Green & Co. * ''The Plattsburg movement: A Chapter of America's Participation in the World War'' (1921), New York: E.P. Dutton & company * ''A Modernist View of National Ideals'' (1926) Berkeley: University of California Press, Howison Lectures in Philosophy, 1925 * ''General Theory of Value'' (1926) * ''Philosophy of the Recent Past: An Outline of European and American Philosophy Since 1860'', (1926), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons * ''The Hope for Immortality'' (1935) * ''The Thought and Character of William James'', 2 vols. (1935) * ''Plea for an Age Movement'' (1942) New York: The

Vanguard Press The Vanguard Press was a United States publishing house established with a $100,000 grant from the left-wing American Fund for Public Service, better known as the Garland Fund. Throughout the 1920s, Vanguard Press issued an array of books on ra ...

alk at 1941 Princeton and Harvard Reunions* ''Puritanism and Democracy'', (1944) * ''Characteristically American: Five Lectures Delivered on the William W. Cook Foundation at the University of Michigan, November–December 1948'', (1949), New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1949 * ''Realms of Value'', (1954), Harvard University Press ased on Gifford Lectures* ''The Humanity of Man'', (1956), New York: George Braziller * "A Definition of morality". In P. W. Taylor (Ed.), Problems of moral philosophy: an introduction to ethics (pp. 13–24). Belmont, CA: Dickenson, 1967

References

External links

Biography
at the

site * * *
Some works by and about Perry
in the Mead Project website

The Monist 12 (1901–2): 446–458.
Review: The Refutation of Idealism
Reviews, The Journal of Philosophy, Vol. I, No. 3 (Feb. 4, 1904), 76–77.

Journal of Philosophy, Psychology, and Scientific Methods 7 (1910): 5–14
Editor’s Preface
''

'' (1912) by William James * ''Lectures on the Harvard Classics''. The

Harvard Classics ''The Harvard Classics'', originally marketed as Dr. Eliot's Five-Foot Shelf of Books, is a 50-volume series of classic works of world literature, important speeches, and historical documents compiled and edited by Harvard University President Ch ...

, Volume LI (1914): *
Philosophy: I. General Introduction
*

*

*

Non-Resistance and the Present War--A Reply to Mr. Russell
International Journal of Ethics, Vol. 25 No. 3 (April, 1915). 307–316. {{DEFAULTSORT:Perry, Ralph Barton 1876 births 1957 deaths 20th-century American biographers 20th-century American economists 20th-century American essayists 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American philosophers 20th-century American educational theorists American bibliographers American bibliophiles American book and manuscript collectors American educators American ethicists American historians of philosophy American male essayists American male non-fiction writers American philosophy academics American political philosophers Analytic philosophers American epistemologists Harvard University alumni Harvard University Department of Philosophy faculty Literacy and society theorists American metaphysics writers Ontologists People from Poultney (town), Vermont American philosophers of culture Philosophers of economics American philosophers of education Philosophers of history American philosophers of mind Philosophers of pessimism American philosophers of religion American philosophers of social science Philosophers of war Presidents of the American Philosophical Association Princeton University alumni Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners Scholars of American education Theorists on Western civilization Writers about activism and social change Writers about religion and science Writers from Massachusetts Writers from Vermont Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery Members of the American Philosophical Society

Biography

Selected publications

See also

References

External links