Background
Marjorie Grene was born on December 13, 1910, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States.
106 Central St, Wellesley, MA 02481, United States
Wellesley College where Marjorie Grene received a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Radcliffe College, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
Radcliffe College where Marjorie Grene studied.
(A key introduction to Aristotle, emphasizing the importan...)
A key introduction to Aristotle, emphasizing the importance of his biological thinking to the study of his thought. Written for students and the general reader with little prior knowledge of Aristotle, this edition features a new preface by Professor Grene
https://www.amazon.com/Portrait-Aristotle-Key-Texts/dp/1855065517
1963
(No student or colleague of Marjorie Grene will miss her i...)
No student or colleague of Marjorie Grene will miss her incisive presence in these papers on the study and nature of living nature, and we believe the new reader will quickly join the stimulating discussion and critique which Professor Grene steadily provokes. For years she has worked with equally sure knowledge in the classical domain of philosophy and in modern epistemological inquiry, equally philosopher of science and metaphysician. Moreover, she has the deeply sensible notion that she should be a critically intelligent learner as much as an imaginatively original thinker, and as a result she has brought insightful expository readings of other philosophers and scientists to her own work.
https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Nature-Philosophy-Biology-Studies/dp/9027704627/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=The+Understanding+of+Nature%3A+Essays+in+the+Philosophy+of+Biology&qid=1576069999&s=books&sr=1-1
1974
(Originally published in paperback in 1986, the essays in ...)
Originally published in paperback in 1986, the essays in this book discuss questions about the growth and conceptual structure of the modern evolutionary synthesis, or 'neo-Darwinism'. Written by biologists, historians and philosophers, the collection provides a penetrating analysis of the development, meaning and problems of twentieth-century evolutionary theory. Part I includes discussion of the role of eugenics in shaping the biological interests of R. A. Fisher; the abandonment of Lamarckism; the influence of systematics and the concepts of adaptation and random drift in the development of Sewall Wright's theory; and explanation of how the synthesis 'hardened' in the decades following its original presentation. Part II examines the history of mimetic theory as a case study in evolutionary thought, while Part III introduces the reader to some aspects of the German tradition. Finally, Part IV addresses the debates that existed around the time of publication.
https://www.amazon.com/Dimensions-Darwinism-Counterthemes-Twentieth-Century-Evolutionary/dp/0521310210/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1576070078&sr=1-1
1983
(Gadfly, heretic, persuasive expositor, and illuminating t...)
Gadfly, heretic, persuasive expositor, and illuminating teacher, Marjorie Grene has been writing about philosophical issues and influencing philosophical debate since the 1930s. In this unrepentant and provocative essay, Grene brings together some of the themes in philosophy, biology, and other disciplines which have influenced her other work, together with recollections of her contacts with some of the thinkers and ideas which have most impressed her.
https://www.amazon.com/Philosophical-Testament-Marjorie-Grene/dp/081269287X/ref=sr_1_15?keywords=A+Philosophical+Testament&qid=1576070135&s=books&sr=1-15
1995
(Does life (for the living) differ from that of the non-li...)
Does life (for the living) differ from that of the non-living? If so, how? And how, in that case, does biology as the study of living things differ from other sciences? These questions are examined through an exploration of episodes in the history of biology and philosophy.
https://www.amazon.com/Philosophy-Biology-Episodic-History-Evolution/dp/0521643716/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=The+Philosophy+of+Biology%3A+An+Episodic+History&qid=1576070172&s=books&sr=1-1
2004
Marjorie Grene was born on December 13, 1910, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States.
Marjorie Grene studied at Wellesley College where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in zoology in 1931. She also studied at Radcliffe College where she received a Master of Arts degree in 1934 and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1935.
Marjorie Grene started her career as an instructor at Monticello College in 1936. she held this post until 1937 and then became an instructor in Philosophy at the University of Chicago where she worked until 1944. In 1944 she moved to Illinois and in 1952 to Ireland where she devoted herself to motherhood and farming. In 1950 she collaborated with Michael Polanyi and in 1957 she returned to the United Kingdom where she became a research assistant to Michael Polanyi at the University of Manchester. In 1958, Grene became a lecturer in philosophy at the University of Leeds and held this post until 1960. She worked as a lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Belfast from 1960 to 1962. In 1965, she took up a post of a Professor of Philosophy at the University of California and worked there until her retirement in 1978.
After her retirement from Davis, Marjorie Grene held visiting positions at twelve colleges and universities – including Rutgers, Yale, UC Berkeley, Boston University and Vassar. She also was a Research Fellow at the American Museum of Natural History from 1985 to 1986. In 1988 Marjorie shifted her base of operations from Ithaca, New York to Blacksburg, Virginia, where she was active in both the Philosophy Department and the Department of Science Studies. Later she was named Honorary University Distinguished Professor.
Marjorie Grene published her first book Dreadful Freedom: A Critique of Existentialism in 1948. Later she wrote such books as A Portrait of Aristotle, The Understanding of Nature and Dimensions of Darwinism. Her last book The Philosophy of Biology was published in 2004. Grene also wrote about a hundred articles.
(Does life (for the living) differ from that of the non-li...)
2004(No student or colleague of Marjorie Grene will miss her i...)
1974(Originally published in paperback in 1986, the essays in ...)
1983(Gadfly, heretic, persuasive expositor, and illuminating t...)
1995(A key introduction to Aristotle, emphasizing the importan...)
1963Marjorie Grene admired Aristotle, on whom she wrote a remarkable book. However, she did not agree with his statement Cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am). A central theme in Grene's work is the role of perception. Based on James Gibson's psychology of perception, she defines perception from the living conditions and requirements of living beings.
Quotations:
"Descartes says: I think, and I am every moment I am thinking, because I have this inner awareness of myself. And I always thought there was something fishy about that. I don't think there's any privileged self-knowledge. Most of our attention is to things outside us."
"It's no use trying to talk philosophy to our politicians. And I'm not a moral or political philosopher. I'm not interested in that."
"Philosophers don't all believe that ethics is just based on intuition. That's just stupid! It's ignoramus!"
Marjorie Grene was a member of the Metaphysical Society of America and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She also was a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Quotes from others about the person
She was one of the first philosophers to raise questions about the synthetic theory of evolution, by combining Darwin's theory of evolution, the understanding of the genetic makeup of evolution. Mendel and the most recent discoveries of molecular biology.
Marjorie Grene married David Grene in 1938. The marriage produced two children. Marjorie and David divorced in 1961.