Russell Construction of External World †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Russell Construction of External World. Answer: Introductrion: Three passions, simple but overwhelmingly strong have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge, and unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind. The above quoted lines of Bertrand Russell clearly outline the nature of his work and the thought process which guided his major philosophical work. It is to be noted that the genre of philosophy is a very wide one and keeps on changing keeping in view the changing nature of the philosophical subject itself (Rodrguez-Consuegra). Therefore, one particular aspect of philosophy which was acceptable at one point of time might not be acceptable at another point of time. In the opinion of George Bernard Shaw articulated in his famous play Man and Superman The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. This statement of Shaw is a pertinent account of the opinion which the people commonly hold against the philosophers. This particular paper intends to shed light on the persona of Bertrand Russell and his philosophies. Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell (1892-1970) was born in the Monmouthshire area of the United Kingdom (Fritz Jr). He hailed from an aristocratic family and therefore received the best quality of education which was available at that particular point of time (Fritz Jr). He is one of the major philosophers of his time and many of the philosophies propounded by him are still in use today. In his own opinion, he was a liberal, a socialist and a pacifist however in the later part of his life he said that he had never been any of these things, in any profound sense (Russell). However, in the recent times he is more famous as the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in the year 1950 (Nobelprize.org). He studied at the Trinity College, Cambridge and later taught at the same college. He is also famous as the teacher of the famous poet and critic T.S. Eliot and for having an affair with the wife of Eliot Vivienne Haigh-Wood (Fritz Jr). It is to be noted that this particular affair caused a considerable amount of trauma to Eliot and was responsible for the nervous breakdown which he had at that particular point of time. It is to ne noted that Russell was one of the most representative figures of the 20th century and many of his works as well as philosophies are still in use today. It is to be noted that the name of Russell is famous for his revolt against the concept of idealism. As a matter of fact he was one of the leaders of the 20th revolt against the precepts of idealism. In addition to this he is famous as one of the founders of the genre of analytic philosophy along with his predecessor Gottlob Frege, colleague G. E. Moore and protg Ludwig Wittgenstein (Roberts). He is also widely reputed as one of the pioneering logicians of the 20th century (Roberts). His joint collaborative work with A. N. Whitehead for the book Principia Mathematica is a reflection of this aspect (Rodrguez-Consuegra). In addition to this, his contribution towards the various genres of philosophy is also significant to note. One of his most famous works "On Denoting" is often considered to be one of the best works written in the 20th century related to the genre of philosophy (Roberts). In the opinion of many scholars, his work has had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, computer science (see type theory and type system) and philosophy, especially the philosophy of language, epistemology and metaphysics (Rodrguez-Consuegra). Talking about the nature of his work and the importance of his own work he said I disliked the real world and sought refuge in a timeless world, without change or decay or the will-o-the-wisp of progress (Russell). Russell is also famous for his protest against the policy of imperialism adopted by the United Kingdom and the various other nations of the world in the early part of the 20th century (Roberts). He is also famous for his anti-war protests which he made in several of his literary works as well as pamphlets. The opinion of Russell articulated in his autobiography The Autobiography of Bertrand Russell I found prison in many ways quite agreeable. I had no engagements, no difficult decisions to make, no fear of callers, no interruptions to my work. I read enormously; I wrote a book, "Introduction to Mathematical Philosophy"... and began the work for "Analysis of Mind" (Russell). It is interesting to note that he was even sent to prison by the governmental authorities for his radical views and propaganda. In addition to this, he advocated preventive nuclear war, before the opportunity provided by the atomic monopoly had passed and welcomed with enthusiasm world government and was an active protester of the dictatorial reign of Hitler (Jager). However, it is significant to note that although Russell all his life was an anti-war protester but in the later part of his life he agreed that the war with Hitler was a necessary and was done in order to protect the interests of the world. It is a reflection of these varied contributions made by him that he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in the year 1950 in recognition of his varied and significant writings in which he champions humanitarian ideals and freedom of thought (Nobelprize.org). It is significant to note that Russell was a renowned mathematician of his time and he was even part of a small group of mathematicians which comprised of the likes of Karl Weierstrass, Georg Cantor, and Richard Dedekind. Russell and his friends of this particular group aimed at providing mathematics with a set of logically rigorous foundations (Jager). In the opinion of many scholars it was the association with this particular group that culminated in his most famous mathematical work The Principles of Mathematics (1903). Russell himself declared his later philosophical works to be a retreat from Pythagoras (Jager). It was this particular action of Russell which gave rise to the paradox that is now commonly called by the name of Russells Paradox. Another concept propounded by Russell, which have gained much popularity in the recent times is the concept of Platonic view of logic (Hylton). It is significant to note that this concept was articulated by his other contemporary Frege as well, with whom he had a difference of opinion. The name of Russell is often associated with the various branches of philosophy however he is most famous as one of the founding members of the philosophical genre of analytical philosophy (Jager). It is significant to note that most of his works were inspired by the work as well as the philosophies of Gottfried Leibniz (Jager). However, in the opinion of the modern day scholars as well as philosophers his contribution was more prominent in the field of metaphysics, the logic and the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of language, ethics and epistemology (Rodrguez-Consuegra). The opinion of Russell himself regarding his aesthetical and philosophical works is significant to note my friends tell me it has not deterred me from writing on other subjects (Eames). In the opinion of many people, in the field of ethics the views of Russell belonged to the genre of Utilitarianism (Rodrguez-Consuegra). He was also an active advocator of the rights of the individuals and more specificall y the right to freedom of expression of the individuals in the society. His philosophical work The Will To Doubt states that None of our beliefs are quite true; all have at least a penumbra of vagueness and error. The methods of increasing the degree of truth in our beliefsin science, and have built up the body of scientific knowledge (Russell). He furthermore says in the same work Every man of science whose outlook is truly scientific is ready to admitmens attitude is tentative and full of doubt (Russell). It is significant to note that this particular work of Russell is as one of the finest works of the 20th century which advocates for the various fundamental rights of the individuals. He gives an overview of his philosophical views in his work The Philosophy of Logical Atomism by saying that My desire and wish is that the things I start with should be so obvious that you wonder why I spend my time stating them. This is what I aim at because the point of philosophy.to end with som ething so paradoxical that no one will believe it (Russell). In his religious outlook Russell was an agnostic and did not believe in the various precepts of religion. The opinion of Russell articulated in his own autobiography The Autobiography of Bertrand Russell is significant to note here "Therefore, in regard to the Olympic gods, speaking to a purely philosophical audience, I would say that I am an Agnostic. But speaking popularly, I think that all of us would say in regard to those gods that we were Atheists. In regard to the Christian God, I should, I think, take exactly the same line (Russell). He further goes on to say that And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those who doubt His existence (Russell). In his outlook towards society he followed the policy of radicalism and proactively protested against the various forms of injustices which he saw in the society around himself. A typical example of this is his protest against the policy of imperialism and war which formed an important part of the society of the 20th century (Hylton). It is significant to note here that Russell believed in the concept of scientific society and said about the same in his autobiography that a scientific society is the one where war would be abolished, population growth would be limited, and prosperity would be shared (Rodrguez-Consuegra). Russell was an active protestor of the concept of idealism however most of ideas regarding the society and the world around him were related to the concept of idealism itself. The comment of Russell in his own work Reflections on My Eightieth Birthday becomes significant here when he says that I have lived in the pursuit of a vision, both personal and social. Personal: to care for what is noble, for what is beautiful, for what is gentle.These things I believe, and the world, for all its horrors, has left me unshaken (Russell). It is significant to note that many scholars considered that Russell abandoned his philosophies of ide alism after he became acquainted with Apostle G.E. Moore (Hylton). It is significant to note that although most of his life he emphasized on the rationality of man yet makes fun of the rationality of man in his words It has been said that man is a rational animal. All my life I have been searching for evidence which could support this (Russell). Therefore, from the above discussion it becomes that Bertrand Russell was one of the most important contributors to the genre of Philosophy, Literature, Mathematics and other branches of study. It is significant to note that most of the theories as well as the concepts propounded by him in the 20th are still in use today in the 21st century and form a part of the core syllabus of some of the major colleges as well as universities of the world. It was in recognition of the contribution made by him that he was awarded the Nobel Prize in the year 1950. Moreover, as the genre of literature, philosophy, mathematics is a very dynamic one and keeps on changing therefore some of the theories of Russell have undergone drastic changes in the recent times but are still in use in their modern form. Therefore, it would not be too far-fetched to say that the man Bertrand Russell was a representative figure of the 20th literature, philosophy and mathematics and other branches of learning. References "Bertrand Russell - Biographical."Nobelprize.org. N.p., 2018. Web. 31 Mar. 2018. Eames, Elizabeth Ramsden.Bertrand Russell's Dialogue with His Contemporaries (Routledge Revivals). Routledge, 2013. Fritz Jr, Charles A.Bertrand Russell's construction of the external world. Routledge, 2014. Hylton, Peter. "Russell, idealism, and the emergence of analytic philosophy." (1990). Jager, Ronald.The development of Bertrand Russell's philosophy. Vol. 11. Routledge, 2014. Roberts, George W.Bertrand Russell memorial volume. Routledge, 2013. Rodrguez-Consuegra, Francisco, ed.The mathematical philosophy of Bertrand Russell: origins and development. Birkhuser, 2012. Russell, Bertrand.An inquiry into meaning and truth. Routledge, 2013. Russell, Bertrand.History of western philosophy: Collectors edition. Routledge, 2013. Russell, Bertrand.My philosophical development. Psychology Press, 1995. Russell, Bertrand.The autobiography of Bertrand Russell Vol. 1: 1872-1914. 1967. Russell, Bertrand.The Collected Papers of Bertrand Russell, Volume 5: Toward Principia Mathematica, 190508. Routledge, 2015.