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William James was born.
William James was born at the Astor House in New York City -
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William _James
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Move to Europa.
Moved to Europe along with his family. -
Joined his study of painting.
Joined his study of painting under William Hunt. -
He went to Harvard.
Left painting and took admission in Lawrence Scientific School at Harvard. -
He enrolled himself in Harvard Medical School.
William James did not leave studying and enrolled himself in Harvard Medical School. But within a year, disinterested in medicine. -
Went on an expedition with Louis Agassiz.
He went in an expedition with naturalist Louis Agassiz. But due to his frequent sickness he had to abort the trip in eight months only -
Travel Germany in search of a cure
His prolonged illness interrupted his studies and made him to travel Germany in search of a cure. -
He accepted to teach undergraduate course im comparative psysiology
He accepted the offer of President Eliot of Harvard to teach undergraduate course in comparative physiology. -
Starting as an instructor in physiology in the spring of Harvard
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He turned assistant professor in psychology in Harvard.
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His first experimental psychology course.
He gave his first experimental psychology course at Harvard in the academic year of 1875-76. -
He married Alice Howe Gibbens.
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He took the post of assistant professor of philosophy.
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He became full professor.
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His most famous work was “The Principles of Psychology”
This voluminous book of twelve hundred pages took twelve years to complete. The four methods that William James used in his Psychology were analysis, introspection, experiment and conclusion. The main five targets of the critical arguments in this volume were innatism, associationism, materialism, spiritualism and metaphysical. Two important topics that were discussed in “The Principles of Psychology” are ‘Emotions’ and ‘Will’. -
Other significant work, “The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy”
This book contained his previously published essays including the famous essays like “The Sentiment of Rationality”, “The Dilemma of Determinism,” “Great Men and Their Environment” and “The Moral Philosopher and the Moral Life”. -
Other writing, “The Varieties of Religious Experience”
In this book, James related human nature with religious experience. He said that the human nature is disinterested to religious institutions, rituals or even ideas but seemed to be interested in the feelings and experiences of individual men in their solitude. -
His later writings include his famous book; “Pragmatism”
In this book, he wrote considerably about the concept of pragmatism. His book, “Pragmatism”, says that truth of an idea can not be proved. For this, James proposed that we instead should focus on usefulness or cash value of the idea. -
James took his retirement from Harvard.
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In his final days
James came up with two other writings namely, “A Pluralistic Universe” and “The Meaning of Truth”. The former book was based on his discussion over the temperamental determination of philosophical theories. While with “Pragmatism”, James colligated the religious with pragmatic, in “A Pluralistic Universe” he offered that religious has a super relation with the universe. -
James was died.
He died at his home in Chocorua, New Hampshire, he was buried in the family plot in Cambridge Cemetery, Cambridge.
