Henri Bergson

Henri Bergson (October 18th 1859 with Paris - January 4th 1941) is a Philosophe and a diplomat French. Especially known for Matter and memory and the creative Evolution , its work is of a great topicality and is studied in various disciplines (cinema, literature, neuropsychology, etc). It obtains the Nobel Prize of literature in 1927.

Biography

This French philosopher published four principal works: initially in 1889, the Test on the immediate data of the conscience , then Matter and memory in 1896, then creative Evolution in 1907, and finally Two Sources of morals and the religion in 1932.

Diplomacy : Henri Bergson gives the impression to have lived the calm life and without surprised of a professor of philosophy. However, if it always were of a great discretion, it played a big role from the point of view of the international policy. Its participation in the creation of the International commission of the intellectual co-operation (ancestor of UNESCO), in 1921, can illustrate the importance which the philosopher attached to education to support international peace. But its participation in the creation of the Company Of the Nations dates from the moment when he was the delegate of France to negotiate with the United States and their president Wilson so that those interpose against the invader at the time of the First World War. To date, one could not determine all the influence that Bergson will have had on the 14 resolutions suggested by Wilson in order to create an international governmental authority to prevent the armed conflicts. More on the causes of the war and the means of attenuating them, from the philosophical point of view, it is necessary to read its book the two sources of morals and the religion.

Youth and formation

It was born with Paris, street Lamartine, not far from the Opéra. It went down by his father from a Polish Jewish family, and by his mother of an English family. Its family lived with London a few years after her birth, and it was familiarized very early with English with his mother. Before its nine years, his/her parents crossed the English Channel and were established in France: Henri was then naturalized French citizen.

He made his schooling in Paris with the Fontaine college, named Lycée Condorcet today. He gained in 1877 the first price of the open Competition of mathematics. Its solution of the problem was published the following year in the Annales of Mathematics and constitutes its first publication. After some hesitations in connection with its career, balancing between sciences and the Humanities , he chose these last finally, and entered to the National university the year of his nineteen years. He obtained a license in letters there, then the aggregation of philosophy in 1881.

The professor

This same year it was named professor in a college of Angers. Two years later it was transferred to the college Blaise Pascal of Clermont-Ferrand. It published in 1884 selected pieces of Lucrèce, accompanied by a critical study of the text and philosophy of the poet, works several times republished. Simultaneously with its teaching, Bergson found time to undertake personal work. It wrote the Essai on the immediate data of the conscience which it subjected at the same time as a short Latin thesis on Aristote for its diploma for the occupation of arts doctor that it obtained in 1889. Its work was published the same year by Felix Alcan, editor Parisian, in the series the Library of contemporary philosophy .

It is interesting to then note that Bergson dedicated its book with Jules Lachelier, Minister for the state education, which was an enthusiastic defender of Felix Ravaisson, and the author of a philosophical work Of the base of induction published in 1871 (Lachelier had been born in 1832, Ravaisson in 1813 and they were both professors at the National university).

Bergson settled then again in Paris, and, after having taught a few months with the Rollin college, it was named with the Lycée Henri-Iv, where there remained eight years. It had into 1891/1892 Alfred Jarry for pupil. In 1892, it marries Louise Neuburger. They had a girl, Jeanne. In 1896, it published its second major work, Matière and memory . This relatively difficult book, but very rich, explores the functions of the brain, undertakes an analysis of perception and memory, and proposes considerations on the problems of the relation between the spirit and the body. Bergson devoted years of research for the preparation of each one of its principal works. It is particularly obvious for Matière and memory , where it shows a pointed knowledge of the medical research which was undertaken for this period.

In 1898, Bergson became lecturer to the National university, and obtained then the title of professor the same year. In 1900, it was appointed professor with the Collège de France, where it accepted the pulpit of Greek philosophy, to replace Charles the Bishop.

The philosopher

With the first international congress of philosophy, which was held in Paris the first five days of August 1900, Bergson made short but important conference: On the psychological origins of our belief in the law of causality . In 1901, Felix Alcan published the Laughter , one of the “minor” productions of Bergson. This test on the direction of “comic” was based on a course which it had given in its youth in Auvergne. Its study is essential to include/understand the vision of Bergson on the life, and its passages treating of the place of art in the life are remarkable. In 1901, Bergson was elected with the policy and Academy of Science morals. In 1903, he collaborated in the Revue of metaphysics and morals by publishing a test named Introduction to the metaphysics , which can be read like a foreword being studied of its principal books.

In 1904, with died of the eminent sociologist Gabriel Delays, Bergson succeeded to him the modern pulpit of Philosophy. Between the 4 and on September 8th, 1904, it was with Geneva to take part in the Second international congress of philosophy where it held a conference on the psychophysiological paralogism or, to quote its new title, the Brain and the thought: a philosophical illusion . A disease prevented it from going to Germany to attend the third congress which took place with Heidelberg.

Its third major work, the creative Evolution , published in 1907, is without question its book more known and more studied. It constitutes one of the major contributions and most original being studied philosophical of the Théorie of the evolution. “ a book as the creative Evolution ” notices Imbart of the Tower, “ is not only one work, but a date, that of a printed new direction to the thought ”. In 1918, Alcan its editor had carried out thirty and one republications, with on average two editions per annum during ten years. After the publication of this book, the popularity of Bergson increased considerably, not only in the academic circles, but also in the general public.

Bergson went to London in 1908 and returned visit to William James, philosopher American of Harvard older than seventeen years Bergson, and which was one of the first to draw the attention of the Anglo-American public to his work. It was an interesting interview and we find the impressions of James in one of his letters of October 4th, 1908: “ It is a so modest man, but what a genius intellectually! I have the firmest conviction that the theory that it developed will end up being essential, and which the time that we live will be a kind of turn in the history of philosophy. ”

Little before its death, James assisted Dr. Arthur Mitchell in its translation of the creative Evolution , published in 1911. The same year appeared in France the translation of a book of James the Pragmatism , whose foreword Vérité and Réalité is hand of Bergson. It there expresses its sympathy to the originality of the work of James and its “nobility of soul”, but brings important reserves.

In April (of the 5 to the 11) 1911, Bergson went to the Fifth congress philosophy to Bologna to Italy, where it made a noticed contribution: philosophical Intuition . It was invited several times in England, inter alia with the Université of Oxford, where it gave two conferences published by Clarendon Press under the name the Perception of the change . In this text, one will appreciate the gift of Bergson to present his ideas in a clear and short way, and these two lessons can be used as introduction to its more important works. Oxford off honoured its visitor by giving him the title with Doctor Science . Two days later, it made a conference with the Université of Birmingham with for subject Vie and conscience . It was published in The Hibbert Journal (Oct. 1911) and constitutes the first test of the book spiritual Energy . In October, it turned over to England where it accepted a triumphal reception, and gave to the University College London four courses on the Nature of the heart . In 1913, he visited the United States with the invitation of the Columbia University of New York and gave conferences in several American cities, where he was received by very many people. In February, in Columbia University, it held of the English and French courses on the subjects Spiritualité and freedom and the philosophical method. Of return in England in May of the same year, it accepted the presidency of the British Society for Psychical Research (SPR) and gave within the framework of the company an astonishing conference: Phantom of alive and seeks psychic , which can be regarded as “ the Discourse on Method ” of qualitative psychic sciences. In spite of this public engagement in favor of metapsychic, Bergson did not cease advancing masked in a field of which it was at the same time one of the advised observers (with the experiments of the general psychological Institute on Eusapia Paladino) and the hidden theorist (according to Bertrand Méheust).

During this time, its popularity increased, and of the translations of its work started in many languages: English, German, Italian, Danish, Swedish, Hungarian, Polish and Russian. In 1914, it was accepted with the French Academy. It was also named president of the Academy of Science morals and policies, became officer of the Légion of honor and officer of the state education.

Qualified liberal religious movements modernistic or néo-catholics tried to adapt the theses of Bergson. The Catholic church reacts by putting the three principal works of Bergson at the Index (decree of June 1st, 1914).

The Great War

In 1914, Scottish universities organized the behavior by Bergson of the series of course Gifford Lectures. A first half was envisaged in spring and the second with the autumn. The first part, made up of eleven courses took place off with Edinburgh University under the title The Problem Personality . The second was cancelled because of the war. Bergson did not remain quiet during the conflict. As of on November 4th, 1914, he wrote an article entitled the force which wears and that which does not wear in hairy, the Bulletin of the Armies of the French Republic. a short speech with the Academy of Science morals and political in December 1914 treated the signifiance of the war . Bergson also took part in the pulling of the Daily Telegraph in honor with the king of the Belgians, King Albert' S book (Christmas 1914). In 1915 it yielded the seat of president of the Academy of Science morals and policies to Alexandre Ribot and made a speech on the evolution of the German imperialism. Meanwhile it found time to write for the ministry for the state education a small summary of French philosophy. Bergson made a great number of voyages and conferences in the United States during the war. It was present when the French mission directed by Mr. Viviani went to the site following the entry in war of the United States. The book of Mr. Viviani the French Mission in America (1917) contains a foreword of Bergson.

January 24th, 1918 it was officially accepted with the French Academy as a successor of Emile Ollivier, the author of the historical work the liberal empire . A session was held in January in its honor where it made according to the use the praise of Ollivier.

As many articles which it had published were not available any more, it agreed the proposal of his friends to join together them and to publish them in two volumes. They carry the title spiritual energy: Tests and conferences . They amongst other things contain Vie and conscience , the heart and the body , the psychophysiological paralogism and of the articles on the mistaken recognition, the dreams, and the intellectual effort. This work is extremely useful to present the concept of mental force of Bergson.

Its last years

In June 1920, the university of Cambridge off honoured it with the diploma of Doctor Letters . To enable him to devote to its work on the ethical , the Religion and the Sociology, Bergson was exempted to ensure the courses related to the pulpit of modern philosophy the Collège de France. It preserved the pulpit, but the courses were held by Edouard Roy.

In 1921, he becomes the first president of the news International commission of intellectual co-operation (CICI, future UNESCO as of 1946) which has as a function to promote the favorable conditions with international peace. It is a question of developing the critical spirit of the individuals thanks to education so that can enable them to act in a healthy and responsible way. The CICI, which gathers in its center several intellectuals of the whole world.

In 1922, on April 6th, it takes part in the meeting of the French company of philosophy which accommodates Einstein of passage in France; on the basis of argument of its book Lasted and simultaneity , it tries to put forward in a debate with the physicist the concept of universal time, made null and void by the theory of relativity.

In 1925, appeared a deforming rheumatism which made it suffer until the end from its days. Living with its wife and her daughter in a modest house in a street calms close to the door of Auteuil to Paris, Henri Bergson accepted the Nobel Prize of literature in 1927. With paralyzed half, it could not go to Stockholm to receive its price.

In 1930, Henri Bergson is high with the dignity of Grand-croix of the Legion of honor.

In 1932, it completed its new work the two sources of morals and of the religion , which extends its philosophical theories to morals, the religion and Article It was accommodated with respect by the public and the philosophical community, but all at that time realized that the great period of Bergson was finished.

It could affirm last once its convictions at the end of its life, while renonçant with all its titles and honors, rather than to accept the exemption of the laws anti-semites imposed by the government of Vichy. Although wishing to convert with Catholicism, it there renonça by solidarity with the other Jews. Testimony of this solidarity, a rumor also wants that it was made carry by close relations to the police station, in spite of its disease, in order to require the yellow star which one had exempted it under the terms of his notoriety.

It is expressed thus in 1937: “ My reflections brought me more and more close to Catholicism where I see the completion of the Judaism. I would have converted if I had not seen preparing since years the formidable wave of anti-semitism which will break on the world. I wanted to remain among those which will be persecuted tomorrow. But I hope that a catholic priest will want, if the Cardinal archbishop authorizes there, to come well to say prayers to my funerals. ''”

He dies the January 4th 1941 at 81 years. Following his request, a catholic priest officiated with his burial. Henri Bergson rests with the cemetery of Garches, in the Hauts-de-Seine.

Recognition of France

On a pillar of the the Pantheon of Paris, an inscription honors the philosopher.

Sources

Translation of the English article the 2/23/2005

Random links: