John Roos’ Blog

Robert D. Richardson has written a rich and highly rewarding biography of William James. James was a towering figure. A pioneer in the development of pragmatism. A master teacher. A restless thinker, who kept growing and changing. A philosopher who studied medicine. A teacher at Harvard for more than 40 years, his students included Theodore Roosevelt and W.E.B. Du Bois.

This biography takes several paths, simultaneously. First, it is a story of the James family. His parents and siblings, most notably the great novelist Henry James. Here emerges a vivid portrait of his father, Henry James, Sr. A man of vision, with strong opinions. Whose had the courage to take his family to Europe for much of William’s formative years. We learn much about his brothers, in particular Henry, and the complex relationship between these brothers. And we learn about the women he loved, the wife he married, and their children.

Richardson takes us on William’s journey through life, which was anything but a straight line. How he really didn’t have a clear idea of a career direction, and restless search. We catch his spirit of adventure, his determination to test theories, not just to receive opinions but to experience. To learn. We see his scientific training applied to what largely are abstract, theoretical subjects. We see him doing things that amaze us, like taking off for Europe, leaving his wife at home with their small child. And we see the constant quest to grow and learn, with a lifelong passion for reading.

Richardson allows us to see how he developed and tested ideas. In the process, he illuminates the ideas that were prominent at the time. James’ reaction to Hegel and Darwin. His discovery of Bergson. This book, in fact, becomes a primer for explaining the origins and essence of many concepts and philosophers, with wonderful, clear sidebars about men and women in James’ life.

Over and over, we see him wrestling with the questions of religion and faith. And we see the evolution of ideas that were expressed in his masterpiece, Varieties of Religious Experience. This was an important book for me, personally. Today, as a committed Christian, I have difficulty accepting some of his statements, and cannot embrace all of his experiments and conclusions. But, as Richardson explains, James played an important role for many people, including me, in presenting the validation of the religious lifestyle. As a scholar and intellectual who openly talked about God.

As Richardson summarized, “He could explain the appeal of religion to people who thought of themselves as unbelievers, and he could explain to the religious how the entire subject could be grasped and accepted as processes that took place in the human mind, broadcast conceived – yet he is too religious for the unbelievers and not religious enough for the believers.”

Alfred North Whitehead famously remarked that James was one of the “four great thinkers whose services to civilized thought rest largely on their achievements inphilosohical assemblage.” (The others were Plato, Aristotle, and Leibniz.) Richardson’s biography helps us understand why James was held so highly by Whitehead and so many others. Why he was so influential.

I truly found this to be an inspiring book. It was deep but completely enjoyable. Richardson deals with technical subjects in a way that is understandable and yet he never insults the reader. I love the way he writes relatively short chapters, which makes the reading process easier on the eye, and the mind.

There is so much more. But, in short, I recommend this book very highly. In many ways, it is a model biography, written with objectivity and yet sympathy. A book to be treasured.