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Geoffrey Edelson Toulmin and Doris Holman Toulmin gave birth to Stephen Toulin on March 25, 1922. Toulmin was born in the United Kingdom.
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Toulmin received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Cambridge at Kings College in 1943. He later returned to Cambridge to receive his Master of Arts degree, and eventually his PhD in philosophy in 1947. Studying at Cambridge, Stephen was inspired by the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein. Wittgensteins theories helped develop most of Toulmin's work.
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In 1950, utilizing his studies at Cambridge, Stephen Toulmin published his first book. "An Examination of the Place of Reason in Ethics."
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Shortly after receiving his PhD from Cambridge, Toulmin became a lecturer in Philosophy of Science at Oxford University. During his time at Oxford he published his second book, "The Philosophy of Science: an Introduction."
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Stephen Toulmin moved to England working as a Professor and as Head of the Department of Philosophy at the University of Leeds.
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in 1958 Stephen Toulmin published arguably his most influential book, "The Uses of Argument." Toulmin's book challenged the way people thought about traditional logic when it came to rhetoric. While the book was looked at as satire from his peers in England, it was well received by United States Rhetoricians.
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In 1965 Stephen Toulmin moved to the United States where he would work at multiple universities.
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in 1972 Toulmin published "Human Understanding: The Collective Use and Evolution of Concepts." This book dove into the evolutionary process of conceptual change and addressed many controversial philosophical changes.
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In 1973 Toulmin worked with philosopher Allan Janik on the book "Wittgenstein's Vienna." This book argues against Plato's theory of the absolute truth believing that instead it can be a relative quality that depends on cultural and historical conditions. This term was later titled "conceptual schemata."
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At the age of 87 Toulmin is pronounced dead in Los Angeles, California due to heart failure.
