I am “out of town” right now but really must reply to Steve’s message. That is so very thoughtful and wise of you, Steve. We are all the beneficiaries of your commitment to us. Thank you! I am so very much looking forward to your comments. I hope, as well, that you, Nancy, will share your insights with us.
Best regards to all,
Waldemar
Waldemar A Schmidt, PhD, MD
(Perseveret et Percipiunt)
Sent from my iPad
> On Jun 29, 2018, at 5:39 AM, Henriques, Gregg - henriqgx <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> I want to second Nancy’s comment here. For folks new to the list, Steve did a wonderful job taking the list through Stephen Pepper’s World Hypotheses. To go through James’ Principles in a similar way will be a treat for me!
>
> Best,
> Gregg
>
> From: tree of knowledge system discussion [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Nancy Link
> Sent: Thursday, June 28, 2018 11:08 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: William James and the Problem of Psychology
>
> Steve,
>
> I applaud your bringing William James back to our awareness. I remember when I read his Principles that I was impressed with how much was known about psychological functioning in 1890.
> When he was writing his Principles, James was struggling to promote his vision of psychology as the study of mental life against the rising tide of behaviourism. He ultimately lost that battle and retreated back to philosophy.
>
> He had a unique way of blending the introspective experience of the individual and with scientific findings. I fear we won’t see the likes of him again.
> I look forward to your notes.
>
> Nancy
>
> From: tree of knowledge system discussion <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Steven Quackenbush <[log in to unmask]>
> Reply-To: tree of knowledge system discussion <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Monday, June 25, 2018 at 3:56 PM
> To: "[log in to unmask]" <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: William James and the Problem of Psychology
>
> Dear ToK community,
>
> This fall, I am co-teaching (with Frank Underkuffler, a colleague in our philosophy department) a course entitled Philosophical Psychology. We have offered this class twice in the last few years, and we typically focus on issues of interest to this group, including the general problem of disciplinary identity. In fact, we used Gregg's A New Unified Theory of Psychology as a primary text when we taught the course in Spring 2014.
>
> This year, we are trying something a little different. There are times when it is appropriate to take four steps back before taking five forward. In this spirit, I feel compelled (as if by some mysterious force) to read William James' (1890) Principles of Psychology in an effort to deepen my understanding of what it means to be a psychologist in the first half of the 21st century.
>
> I've studied large sections of this book in the past, but never the whole thing [from cover(s) to cover(s)]. My colleague and I have decided to adopt Principles of Psychology as our primary text this fall. Of course, we will not likely assign every chapter (and we will almost certainly "skip around", discussing material in whatever order makes the most pedagogical sense, given the questions we are addressing in the class).
>
> But this summer I plan to read the entire book -- chapter by chapter -- in order. I will be guided by three preliminary questions (which may themselves evolve over time).
>
> 1) How does James conceive the discipline of psychology?
> Here I'm inspired by David Leary's (2018) comment (in his recently-published Routledge Guide):
> "...much of the value and potential contemporary relevance of The Principles of Psychology is embedded less in its instructive treatment of this or that topic, and more in the overarching vision conveyed by its various parts, when read and considered in unison....he, after all, saw everything as interrelated" (p. x).
> Note that I've only read the preface to Leary's book. My intention is to complete my study of James' text before systematically reviewing the secondary literature. This is not a dogmatic methodological precept. I may consult the secondary literature if significant interpretive puzzles arise, but I'd like to my reading of James to be as "fresh" as reasonably possible (i.e., uncontaminated by decades of expert discussion).
> 2) William James has been characterized as a "personalist"; e.g., see the NYT article by David Brooks forwarded to this listserv by Gregg a few weeks ago. If personalism "is a philosophic tendency built on the infinite uniqueness and depth of each person" (Brooks), in what respect(s) does The Principles of Psychology offer a personalistic account of the human organism? What does it mean to consider James a personalist?
>
> 3) Is there an ethics implicit in Principles of Psychology? Note that this question may be closely tied to Question #2. Also note that Questions #2 and #3 will likely need to be modified as my understanding of William James deepens. [Sometimes, the question to ask at the beginning of a study of this sort is simply: "What questions should I be asking?". All I can really say at present is that I am especially interested in James' (a) vision of psychology, (b) account of the person, and (c) understanding of the Good Life.]
>
> My outline of Chapter 1 [which addresses Question #1 above] is attached. I plan to proceed on the following schedule:
> July 10: Chapters 2-8
> July 24: Chapters 9-16
> August 7: Chapters 17-22
> August 21: Chapters 23-28
> I will prepare notes for each of these readings. My intention (as always) is for these notes to make sense to those who haven't read James' text. However, I will focus on themes relevant to my guiding questions (outlined above). I am not trying to craft a synopsis of each section.
>
> For those interested in accompanying me on this journey, the complete text is available online here: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__psychclassics.yorku.ca_James_Principles_index.htm&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=4rRtIjEAq7ux-zBl7rK5ksfk7_xljbUQ9h_NyyR0C38&s=Z-qwJBwUPTQ7DuwAxFOSS_wffwsIk4LwS6PPuZ04Zm4&e=
>
> I am using the following print edition:
> · Volume 1: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.amazon.com_Principles-2DPsychology-2DVol-2D1_dp_0486203816_ref-3Dsr-5F1-5F2-3Fs-3Dbooks-26ie-3DUTF8-26qid-3D1525970541-26sr-3D1-2D2-26keywords-3Dprinciples-2Bof-2Bpsychology-2Bwilliam-2Bjames&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=4rRtIjEAq7ux-zBl7rK5ksfk7_xljbUQ9h_NyyR0C38&s=hH0CW4_4roQgFHHyTc-p_GDLX2qwKzBfHmTKfp1RnGI&e=
> · Volume 2: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.amazon.com_Great-2DBooks-2DWestern-2DWorld-2DWilliam_dp_B000HMOKB6_ref-3Dsr-5F1-5F1-3Fs-3Dbooks-26ie-3DUTF8-26qid-3D1525970655-26sr-3D1-2D1-26keywords-3Dgreat-2Bbooks-2Bof-2Bthe-2Bwestern-2Bworld-2B53-2Bwilliam-2Bjames&d=DwIFaQ&c=eLbWYnpnzycBCgmb7vCI4uqNEB9RSjOdn_5nBEmmeq0&r=HPo1IXYDhKClogP-UOpybo6Cfxxz-jIYBgjO2gOz4-A&m=4rRtIjEAq7ux-zBl7rK5ksfk7_xljbUQ9h_NyyR0C38&s=PuFVlWHS0SKiM2ajxcURMGwQIisO0M7s_3rIppifAJo&e=
> I welcome your input on the attached notes (or any other aspect of this project).
>
> ~ Steve Q.
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