An Ethical Philosophy of Life Presented in Its Main Outlines Books by Felix Adler

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

An Ethical Philosophy of Life Presented in Its Main Outlines Books by Felix Adler This is a reproduction of a library book that was digitized by Google as part of an ongoing effort to preserve the information in books and make it universally accessible. http://books.google.com FROM THE BEQUEST OF JAMES WALKER (Class of 1814) President oj Harvard College "Preference being given to works in the Intellectual and Moral Sciences " nammammrf AN ETHICAL PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE PRESENTED IN ITS MAIN OUTLINES BOOKS BY FELIX ADLER An Ethical Philosophy of Life The World CrUU and Its Meaning Marriage and Divorce Life and Destiny The Religion of Duty The Moral Instruction of Children IM AN ETHICAL PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE PRESENTED IN ITS MAIN OUTLINES BY FELIX ADLER D. APPLETON AND COMPANY NEW YORK LONDON 1918 ( MAY 221910 ) COPTRIOBT, 1918, BT D. APPLETON AND COMPANY Printed in the United States of America PREFACE This book records a philosophy of life growing out of the experience of a lifetime. The convictions put in it are not dog matic, for dogma is the conviction of one man imposed author itatively upon others. The convictions herein expounded are submitted to those who search, as the writer has searched, for light on the problems of life, in order that they may compare their experience with his, and their interpretations of their ex perience with his interpretation.1 It is a great hope that some of the readers of this book may find the general world-view expounded congenial, and for them also real and true. It is believed that others may find the practical suggestions as to the conduct of life in which the theory issues helpful in part, if not in whole, as many of us accept from the teachings of the Stoics, or of other thinkers, practical precepts, without on that account adopting the philosophy from which these precepts are derived. The book is divided into four parts: the first an autobi ographical introduction describing the various stations on the road by which the author arrived at his present position, and offering incidental appreciations and appraisements of the Hebrew religion, of Emerson, of the ethics of the Gospels, of Socialism and of other social reform movements. The second part expounds the philosophical theory. The third part contains the applications of the theory to the more strictly personal life, under the captions of the Three 1 In view of the writer's connection with the Ethical Culture So cieties it is fitting to state expressly that the philosophical positions herein set forth are not to be taken as an official pronouncement on behalf of the Ethical Culture Movement. The Ethical Societies as such have no official philosophy. See Book IV, Chapter 9. v vi PREFACE Shadows of Sickness, Sorrow and Sin, and also to the principal so-called Rights to Life, Property, Reputation. The fourth part applies the theory to the social institutions, to the Family, the Vocation, the State, the International So ciety, and the Church, these institutions being considered as an expanding series through which the individual is to pass on his pilgrimage in the direction of the supreme spiritual end. The principal problems considered are: 1. How to establish the fundamental ethical dictum that every human being ought to count, and is intrinsically worth while. This dictum has been denied by many of the greatest thinkers, who assert the intrinsic inferiority of some men, the intrinsic superiority of others. The practice of the world also runs most distinctly contrary to it. How then is it to be validated? 2. The problem of how to attach a precise meaning to the term "spiritual," thereby divesting it of the flavor of sentimen tality and vagueness that attaches to it. 8. How to link up the world's activities in science, art, politics, business, to the supreme ethical end. 4. How to lay foundations whereon to erect the convic tion that there verily is a supersensible reality. For the repetitions that occur throughout the volume in dulgence is requested. In presenting an unfamiliar system of thought they may sometimes assist the reader in retaining the thread. The work is conceived as a whole, and should be read through before any part of it is more minutely examined. The theory of Part II especially should be read in the light of the appli cations submitted in Parts IU and IV. AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL CONTENTS BOOK IINTRODUCTION CHAPTER PAGE I. Prelcde 3 II. The Hebrew Religion 14 III. Emerson 27 IV. The Teachings op Jesus 30 V. Social Reform 48 VI. The Influence of My Vocation on Inner Devel opment 58 BOOK II PHILOSOPHICAL THEORY I. Introductory Remarks: Critique of Kant . 73 II. Critique of Kant (Continued) .... 82 III. Preliminary Remarks on Worth, and on the Rea sons Why the Method Employed by Ethics Must Be the Opposite of That Employed by the Physical Sciences ..... 91 IV. The Ideal of the Whole 100 V. The Ideal of the Whole and the Ethical Mani fold . ... .114 VI. The Ideal of the Spiritual Universe and the God- Ideal 125 BOOK III APPLICATIONS: THE THREE SHADOWS, SICKNESS, SORROW AND SIN, AND THE RIGHT TO LIFE, PROPERTY AND REPUTATION I. Introduction 147 II. The Three Shadows: Sickness, Sorrow, Sin . .154 vfl viii CONTENTS CHAPTER • PAGE III. Bereavement 162 IV. The Shadow op Sin . .171 V. The Spiritual Attitude to be Observed towards Fellow-Men in General, Irrespective of the Special Relations Which Connect Us More Closely with Some than Others . .179 VI. The Meaning of Forgiveness .... 202 VII. The Supreme Ethical Rule: Act so as to Elicit the Best in Others and Thereby in Thyself 208 VIII. The Supreme Ethical Rule (Continued) . 220 IX. How to Learn to See the Spiritual Numen in Others 228 BOOK IV APPLICATIONS: THE ETHICS OF THE FAMILY, THE STATE, THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, ETC. I. The Collective Task of Mankind and the Three fold Reverence ...... 241 II. The Family 249 IIJ. The Vocations 260 IV. The Practical Vocations 270 V. The Vocation of the Artist: Outline of a Theory of the Relation of Art to Ethics . 277 VI. Educational Vocations, or Vocations Connected with the State 289 VII. The State 805 VIII. The National Character Spiritually Trans formed: the International Society, or the Organization of Mankind .... 824 IX. Religious Fellowship as the Culminating Social Institution 841 X. The Last Outlook on Life 854 APPENDIX Appendix I: Spiritual Self-Discipline .... 865 Appendix II: The Exercise of Force in the Interest op Freedom 869 INDEX 875 AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL BOOK I INTRODUCTION CHAPTER I PRELUDE What this book offers is a system of thought and of points of view as to conduct, as these have jointly grown out of personal experience. It will be useful to introduce them with an autobiographical statement. The ideas which follow are such as have been found by me, the author, to be fruitful. Certainly I claim for them objectivity; but I do so because of what I have found them to mean in my own life. He who has been scorched by lightning knows that the effects of the lightning will be felt by all who are exposed to the same experience. I narrate my experience ; let others compare with it theirs. There is, however, a serious, and most embarrassing difficulty in the way of discussing the phases and vicissi tudes of one's ethical development. Self-appraisement is necessarily involved in the narration. The outstand ing subject of ethics is the self and its relations. The physicist, the chemist, the biologist, however the meth ods they use may differ in other respects, agree in the endeavor to eliminate the personal equation. The psy chologist likewise does his best to see the procession that moves across the inner stage like an interested but detached spectator. In the case of ethics, however, the personal factor cannot be eliminated, because the per- 3 4 AN ETHICAL PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE sonal factor is just the Alpha and the Omega of the whole matter; and if this be left out of account, the very object to be studied disappears. Ethical standards are exacting, separated often from performance by the widest interval. To set up a stand ard, therefore, is to reflect upon oneself, to expose one self to the backstroke of one's own deliverances, to be plunged perhaps into deep pits of self-humiliation. How shall anyone have the courage to face so search ing a test, or the hardihood to discuss with a lofty air, and to recommend to others ideals of conduct against which he knows that he daily offends? How can anyone teach ethics or write about it? The words of the Sermon on the Mount, "Judge not that ye be not judged," seem to apply very closely. Do not judge others, do not lay down the law for others, because in so doing you will be judged in the inner forum, becoming a re pulsive object in your own eyes, or standing forth a whited sepulcher. In brief, to touch the subject of ethics is to handle a knife that cuts both ways, to cast a weapon which returns upon him who sends it. The difficulty then which confronts the ethical writer is that the attitude of detachment possible in other branches of investigation is found to be impossible when one attempts to sound the profundities of that kind of inner experience which is called ethical. The self ob trudes itself at every point, and it instinctively refuses to be humbled. What may be denominated the strug gle for self-esteem has indeed played a leading role both in the outer and inner history of mankind. This struggle, whose immense importance is often overlooked, PRELUDE 5 accounts for even more interesting facts than the bio logical struggle for existence.
Recommended publications
  • HUMANISM Religious Practices
    HUMANISM Religious Practices . Required Daily Observances . Required Weekly Observances . Required Occasional Observances/Holy Days Religious Items . Personal Religious Items . Congregate Religious Items . Searches Requirements for Membership . Requirements (Includes Rites of Conversion) . Total Membership Medical Prohibitions Dietary Standards Burial Rituals . Death . Autopsies . Mourning Practices Sacred Writings Organizational Structure . Headquarters Location . Contact Office/Person History Theology 1 Religious Practices Required Daily Observance No required daily observances. Required Weekly Observance No required weekly observances, but many Humanists find fulfillment in congregating with other Humanists on a weekly basis (especially those who characterize themselves as Religious Humanists) or other regular basis for social and intellectual engagement, discussions, book talks, lectures, and similar activities. Required Occasional Observances No required occasional observances, but some Humanists (especially those who characterize themselves as Religious Humanists) celebrate life-cycle events with baby naming, coming of age, and marriage ceremonies as well as memorial services. Even though there are no required observances, there are several days throughout the calendar year that many Humanists consider holidays. They include (but are not limited to) the following: February 12. Darwin Day: This marks the birthday of Charles Darwin, whose research and findings in the field of biology, particularly his theory of evolution by natural selection, represent a breakthrough in human knowledge that Humanists celebrate. First Thursday in May. National Day of Reason: This day acknowledges the importance of reason, as opposed to blind faith, as the best method for determining valid conclusions. June 21 - Summer Solstice. This day is also known as World Humanist Day and is a celebration of the longest day of the year.
    [Show full text]
  • American Jewish History a Qijilrteriy P11bllcatlon of the Amerloan J.Ewlsh Hlstorloal Society
    American Jewish History A QIJilrteriY P11bllcatlon of the Amerloan J.ewlsh Hlstorloal SOciety Two Jewish Lawyers Named Lollis* JONATHAN D. SARNA The year r856 was a vintage year for brilliant Jewish lawyers named Louis. On November 13, r8s6, Louis Brandeis was born in Louisville, Kentucky. One month later, on December 14, r856, Louis Marshall was born in Syracuse, New York. Louis and Louis were both first-generation Americans, born of central European Jewish parents. They both compiled stellar academic records. They both went on to have a profound affect on American law. Both were considered for seats on the U.S. Supreme Court, although only one of them made it.' And both became eminent leaders in American Jewish life. Yet while both men earned enormous respect within the Jewish and general communities, they never became friends and rarely worked to­ gether. They differed religiously, philosophically, and politically. They approached Judaism, America, and even the law itself from sharply different perspectives. The parents of Louis Brandeis and Louis Marshall arrived in America at approximately the same time in the middle of the nineteenth century.' Brandeis' parents hailed from Prague, Marshall's father from Baden and his mother from Wiimemberg. The two fathers had experienced prejudice and privation in central Europe that precipitated their emigration. Adolph Brandeis, who grew up in an urban area and studied at the Technical ,. An earlier version of this paper was delivered as the 1006 B. G. Rudolph Lecture in Judaic Studies at Syracuse University, commemorating the rsorh anniversary of the birth of Louis Marshall. I am grateful to Syracuse University for permitting me to publish the lecture here.
    [Show full text]
  • What's It Going to Cost
    IS “THE ETHICIST” THE ANSWER? Gary B. Anderson, M.D. ETHICS ◼ The application of moral principles to everyday situations. A system to guide action based on judgement which respects the rights of others and that is separate from religious orthodoxy. “The Ethicist” ◼ A “New York Times” writer (Randy Cohen), who from 1999 to 2011 wrote a weekly column for the “Times Magazine”. ◼ His most famous achievement however was inventing David Letterman’s “Top Ten List.” Is it ethical? ◼ To submit the same report twice in two different situations? • Does it harm anyone? • Does this gain unfair advantage? • Does this garner an unjustified reward? ◼ Does this action violate any rules? • This is a pragmatic or legal, not ethical consideration. The ethicists answer: ◼ Yes. ◼ There is no harm to others. ◼ It is your own work to use as you choose. ◼ You may get expelled. Is it ethical? ◼ To move to a better seat at a Thunder game? • Does it harm anyone? • Does this gain unfair advantage? • Does this garner an unjustified reward? ◼ Does this action violate any rules? • This is a pragmatic or legal, not ethical consideration. The ethicists answer: ◼ Yes. ◼ There is no harm to other fans. ◼ It is wasteful to let the seats go unused. ◼ The team is a local monopoly, so you have no other alternative venue to choose. Is it ethical? ◼ To buy an obviously (accidently) mispriced item? • Does it harm anyone? • Does this gain unfair advantage? • Does this garner an unjustified reward? ◼ Does this action violate any rules? • This is a pragmatic or legal, not ethical consideration.
    [Show full text]
  • – 1 – This Is a Post-Peer-Review, Pre-Copyedit Version of an Article
    This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in History of Philosophy Quarterly 35 (2018), 371–387. Ethical Culture. Felix Adler and the Emergence of Applied Ethics from the Spirit of American Pragmatism Bert Heinrichs Abstract In this article, I seek to show that—contrary to the two prevailing views—applied ethics has neither existed “all along,” nor should it be regarded as an unforeseen philosophical response to new kinds of social challenges in the 1960s. In contrast, applied ethics is a genuine philosophical innovation whose origins can be traced back to the late nineteenth century. It is my central thesis that the key step in its development occurred in the intellectual environment around American Pragmatism. To be precise, I will claim that Felix Adler can be regarded as the founder of applied ethics in the modern sense. Consideration of the historical context allows for an understanding of applied ethics as an approach deeply rooted in the philosophical tradition and, at the same time, facilitates comprehension of important methodological characteristics that are still relevant for contemporary practice. Keywords Applied ethics, Felix Adler, pragmatism, Kantianism 1. The Notion of Applied Ethics In this article, I seek to show that—contrary to the two prevailing views—applied ethics has neither existed “all along,” nor should it be regarded as an unforeseen – 1 – philosophical response to new kinds of social challenges in the 1960s.1 In contrast, applied ethics is a genuine philosophical innovation whose origins can be traced back to the late nineteenth century. It is my central thesis that the key step in its development occurred in the intellectual environment around American Pragmatism.
    [Show full text]
  • From Reform Judaism to Ethical Culture
    THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE November 15, 1979 ,.;; 'tiM SHe .' _. '. - ;- ~ . - ~ - ~.-i~{--~~,Af #~~'¥#~~!~~~r~a"D7" '!f!!~!: ~es~v~t~er ~S ·e~~~!~~~··. ~. }<::~~:t£ Benny Kraut,. "Fmm, Reform Any list .. of American Social FE!lix Adler's influefiOOnEMtr.h~· '.. Judaism toE.hicaIOulture: The Gospel thinkers should rank 1')1[11 less lQPrns.lar:9~JI:1.. {AtrteriCan ReUglous EvoluHQ'n of. Felix near the top .. He contr-ibuted to~ewiSh)ife.l.,8.t" . .... rabbis, Adler." An L Edward Kiev Library the movement which rejected theimbuedwHti a (Japtb... social Foundation Book. Hebrew· Union deterministic philosophy of SIJC- . COlliclousnessb8relyik~n in O.ollege Press; f979(285pp. ial Darwinism, and insisted In- earlier days, freel)L~mlttedthat . $16 ..50. '.. stead. that man could create a Adler was realty theIT.mentor-in better, highly ethical future. His 'ethics If not inJeligion; "He comes as near to being, a influence on. American religion ,"I turned to him for guidance, saint as iUs possible for a human was both indomitably powerful_ for spiritual guidance and for being to do. He is So good that a and durablyperrnanent. moral help, "Rabbi Stephen Wise ',.,c great many people regard him as In his' new book, "From Reform admittefl aft~rAdler died., Wise eccentric.... YolJ coulQhardly be-JudaismtoEthical Culture: The viewed Adledls the "one prop he-. lieve meifl were to repeat to you Religious Evolution of Felix tic Jewish VOice" in New York all the bad names he has . been Adler," Of. Benny Kraut, associ- City. , c~Uad. Crank, 'hypocrite,pharj- at~ professor and directorot'the In his later years,Adlerfrequen~ see, infidel-everything hisene- Jewish Studies Program at the :",tly denied that he was a Jew.
    [Show full text]
  • UC Santa Barbara UC Santa Barbara Previously Published Works
    UC Santa Barbara UC Santa Barbara Previously Published Works Title Secularism, Humanism, and Secular Humanism: Terms and Institutions Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5023z45w Author Blankholm, Joseph Publication Date 2016 Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Joseph Blankholm Department of Religious Studies University of California, Santa Barbara Secularism, Humanism, and Secular Humanism: Terms and Institutions Abstract: This chapter considers recent American attempts to recognize secular humanism as a religion in light of more than a century of debates over the religiosity of secularism and humanism. It offers a history of these terms’ codependent evolution in the United States by focusing on the individuals, groups, and institutions that have adopted them and shaped their meanings. The chapter also argues that those who use these terms today bear forth a fraught and sometimes self-contradicting inheritance. In order to recognize the stakes of contemporary struggles over the meaning and purpose of secularism, one needs a deeper understanding of how the term has come to bear its traces and how it fits within a shifting constellation of labels and concepts. Keywords: Secularism, Humanism, Secular Humanism, Organized Nonbelievers, Secular Activism, Separation of Church and State In October of 2014, a federal district judge in the state of Oregon ruled that secular humanism is a religion, at least for legal purposes involving the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment. The judge sided with the lawsuits’ plaintiffs, who argued that a humanist inmate at a federal prison should receive certain rights reserved solely for religious groups.
    [Show full text]
  • The Jewish Advance
    of the loose dvr The Jewish Advance. animal hoax paper found light how little we have to rely on our eellence, has just published Catal-oy to in dvr something inquire about, but did not reformers. What the pen and the argu- Ihbrolschen Handschn/tvn 84 & 86 FIFTH AVENUE. zu (Ham- find the right person of whom to inquire, ment could not do, this event did, and, Stadthibliotlu'k Hambnnj 220 After and the absurd to the of a man to whom we burg, 1878, XX, and pages). Terms of Subscription: penitential day” theory, quote words at the Ham- of which Judaism is as as the Royal Library Munich, Per annum. $3.00 innocent eitil- indeed look up as to a master of Jewish contains the richest col- For .. burg Library six months. 1.30 er of the parties concerned in the mar- learning and principles: Single Copies.10 lection of Hebrew manuscripts in all riage, sprang into existence. The "de- Man weiß in der That nicht, worüber Kates of Advertisi.no : ) Germany. It enumerates and describes fection,” therefore, lies with neither of man über die One line Nompareil, one insertion,.$ .15 j mehr staune-n soll, gemeine 855 volumes. But almost every one of 1 month the prominent Jewish but (4 insert.).. .50 ministers, oder die große »Jgnoranz, die in these volumes contains four, five, and 3 months, (13 insert.) 1.00 wi th the HI m jBosheit -press. very private affair ust das some even ten and more various manu- 12 (52 insert.) 3.00 HAmerika so frech Haupt erhebt.
    [Show full text]
  • Felix Adler's Campaign for Social Justice in the Progressive
    “Let Our Little People Go Free:” Felix Adler’s Campaign for Social Justice in the Progressive Era Esther Lifshitz Senior Thesis HIST C4399 Department of History, Columbia University April 12, 2010 Lifshitz ii Acknowledgments This thesis benefited from the talent, wisdom, and dedication of many who merit mention. I would like to thank the wonderful librarians and staff at Columbia University’s libraries, particularly the archivists at the Rare Book and Manuscript Library for all their assistance. I am also sincerely grateful to the Leaders and affiliates of the New York Society for Ethical Culture, namely, Dr. Anne Klaeysen, Dr. Howard B. Radest, and Dr. Marc Bernstein, who were always gracious with their time and supportive of my research. The intelligence and passion of my history professors have inspired my outlook on history. While they did not contribute directly to this thesis, Professor Alan Brinkley and PhD student Alexander Kaye warrant mention for their influence on the development of my scholarship. This applies as well to professors Eric Foner and Casey Blake, who deserve special thanks for the generous time and advice they gave to this thesis. I must pay tribute to Professor Steven Mintz, my teacher for two semesters, advisor for the past two years, and second reader for this thesis. Professor Mintz was forever encouraging, considerate, and constructive; his patience and guidance were invaluable not only to this thesis but to my academic career. Among the many debts I owe to Professor Mintz, his classes shaped my approach to historical study. Professor Mintz is both an exceptional teacher and human being.
    [Show full text]
  • Fifty Years of History: the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island
    Fifty Years of History: The Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island Introduction * In The Beginning: A brief retrospective of the Ethical Movement in the United States to the beginnings of the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island. * 1950s – America Grows Up – Bricks And Ideas, The Ethical Culture Movement Comes To Long Island: We have built well. We have found that there is a strong need for an Ethical Society on Long Island, and we know that there is opportunity ahead of us. We see Long Island growing bigger and we want to help it grow better. We think we can do this by making our Meeting House that in spirit as well as name -- –a place where men meet to seek the highest together. -- –Sheldon Ackley, Leader 1950 -1959, Ethical Culture Society of Long Island * 1960s – Innocence Lost – Beginning The Battle: Today, when democracy is more aware how vast is its program of unfinished business, the call to increase the knowledge, the love, the practice of the best human relationships is still, we believe, the call to take part in the sublimest and most needed of [people's] endeavors. Responding to it by lives which add their gift, howsoever small, to the world's treasure of good and lovable living, lives which reanimate in others hope, trust, courage to keep moving ahead, can give people their most rewarding satisfaction and their truest title to the name human. -- –Henry Neumann, Leader, Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture * 1970s – America At The Doorstep Of Self- DesctructionDesctructionDesctructionDestruction – A Light In The Dark: Nature is a source of strength.
    [Show full text]
  • „Modernity” in Education Around 1900*)
    1 Jürgen Oelkers „Modernity” in Education around 1900*) In 1876 Harper & Brothers of New York published an anthology entitled The First Century of the Republic. The subtitle read: „A Review of American Progress.” The editor was the publicist Theodore Dwight Woolsey,1 president of Yale University for many years and educated in Germany as a classical philologist. The publication’s title was also its agenda; it sought to review the first one hundred years of the first modern republic. This represented an opportunity that was too good for any publisher to miss, especially this one.2 James and John Harper established their publishing house in 1817 and their first book was John Locke’s Essay on Human Understanding. Not only is it a bold title, but many aspects of the book on the American progress are unusual. It does not open with a preface by the editor, but with a note entitled „publishers’ advertisement.” The note is not signed in the name of the Harper brothers, but with a reference to the publisher’s office, „Franklin Square, New York.” The editor, Woolsey, is not identified as such; his name simply appears as the first in the list of contributors on the frontispiece. His role as editor has thus been assumed.3 The individual pages of the book are printed in two columns of closely spaced lines; the volume appears very dense and contains 506 pages, which does not suggest an easy reading. In their introductory note, the Harper brothers wrote that the book was intended as a national „supplement” to the International Exhibition in Philadelphia.
    [Show full text]
  • Inside This Issue Negotiating Your Rights As an Author Research
    Vol. 14, No 2 October/November 2004 Negotiating Your Rights as an Author Research Impact of Open Access Articles Some publishers now offer author-friendly copyright A recent study found that articles freely available on the agreements that allow authors to retain rights to their Web have greater research impact as measured by the works to use in teaching or future scholarly efforts. degree to which they are cited. Kristin Antelman, North This easing of exclusive copyright transfer requirements Carolina State University, looked at articles from is due in large measure to the growing open access philosophy, political science, electrical and electronic movement, which is defined as free and unrestricted engineering, and mathematics. Each of these disciplines online availability to journal articles. was deemed to be in varying stages of adopting open access. Even the mega-publisher Elsevier has revised the Articles from ten high-impact journals in each field for a copyright agreement authors are asked to sign. two-year period formed the sample. The citedness of each Copyright information provided at their “Author article was determined using the ISI Citation Indexes. Each Gateway” (http://www.authors.elsevier.com/) indicates article was then searched on the Web using the Google that authors will maintain rights for personal use search engine, which now indexes the full-text of PDF files including teaching, posting pre-print and final versions and some PostScript files in addition to html pages. of articles on their personal or institutional websites For each of the disciplines, articles in the open access with a link to the journal home page, presenting the sample had higher citation counts than those only available work at meetings, and preparing derivative works.
    [Show full text]
  • Oppenheimer, Bethe, and the Moral Against Unsupported Attacks (Attacks Responsibility of the Scientist
    Current Books essays. Had Singer reshaped some of the Study in Princeton, New Jersey, while essays and put a bit more effort into harmo- Bethe returned to Cornell University, his nizing the others, the result would have intellectual home since 1935 and a scholarly been a far better book. But one should still be community that would give him moral sup- grateful for the intelligence and judiciousness port. of the book we do have. One should “It is one of Bethe’s striking characteris- acknowledge, too, that writers who have the tics,” writes Schweber, a physicist and science temerity to write about Santayana are historian at Brandeis University, “that there doomed to be outshone by their subject. We is only one of him—in contrast to Oppen- can be grateful to Singer for showing just heimer.” When Cold War anticommunism such temerity, and thereby helping to keep struck American college campuses in the Santayana’s vision alive. 1940s and 1950s, a duplicitous Oppen- —Wilfred M. McClay heimer so feared his conservative critics that he could not bring himself to defend publicly a former student, University of IN THE SHADOW OF THE BOMB: Rochester physics professor Bernard Peters, Oppenheimer, Bethe, and the Moral against unsupported attacks (attacks Responsibility of the Scientist. prompted by Oppenheimer’s own casual By S. S. Schweber. Princeton Univ. remarks). By contrast, Bethe staunchly Press. 260 pp. $24.95 defended Cornell physicist Philip Morrison against biased accusations by the university’s o understand the overlapping but alumni and board members. President Tdivergent careers of nuclear physi- Dwight Eisenhower’s science adviser, cists J.
    [Show full text]