The Great Philosophers
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| - | '''Bryan Edgar Magee''' (12 April 1930 – 26 July 2019) was a [[British philosopher]], broadcaster, politician and author best known for bringing philosophy to a popular audience. | ||
| - | ==Early life== | + | '''''The Great Philosophers''''' was a 1987 television series presented by [[Bryan Magee]]. There were 15 episodes, in each of which Magee interviewed a noted philosopher. |
| - | Born of working-class parents in [[Hoxton]], London, in 1930, within a few hundred yards of where his paternal grandparents were born, Magee was brought up in a flat above the family clothes shop, where he shared a bed with his elder sister, Joan.<ref name=obit/> He was close to his father but had a difficult relationship with his abusive and overbearing mother.<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/><ref name=":1"/> He was evacuated to [[Market Harborough]] in Leicestershire, during World War II, but when he returned to London, much of Hoxton had been bombed flat. Magee was educated at [[Christ's Hospital]] school on a [[London County Council]] scholarship. During this formative period, he developed a keen interest in socialist politics, while during the school holidays he enjoyed listening to political orators at [[Speakers' Corner]], Hyde Park, London, as well as regular visits to the theatre and concerts.<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=A72sW0qqyYUC&pg=PA257|title=Growing Up In A War|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=5 December 2008|publisher=Random House|via=Google Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | During his [[National Service]] he served in the [[British Army]] and in the [[Intelligence Corps (United Kingdom)|Intelligence Corps]]<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> seeking possible [[espionage|spies]] among the refugees crossing the border between Yugoslavia and Austria. After [[demobilisation]] he won a scholarship to [[Keble College, Oxford]], where he studied History as an undergraduate and then [[Philosophy, Politics and Economics]] in one year.<ref>{{cite book|last=Magee|first=Bryan|title=Confessions of a Philosopher|year=1998|publisher=Random House|location=New York|isbn=0-375-50028-6|page=10}}</ref> His friends at Oxford included [[Robin Day]], [[William Rees-Mogg]], [[Jeremy Thorpe]] and [[Michael Heseltine]]. While at university, Magee was elected president of the [[Oxford Union]]. He later became an honorary fellow at Keble.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keble.ox.ac.uk/about/keble-today/Current-honorary-fellows|title=Current Honorary Fellows — Keble College|publisher=|accessdate=24 August 2016}}</ref> | + | In this series, Magee discussed the major historical figures of Western philosophy with fifteen contemporary philosophers. The series covered the philosophies of [[Plato]], [[Aristotle]], and [[Descartes]], among others, ending with a discussion with [[John Searle]] on the philosophy of Wittgenstein. Transcripts of ''The Great Philosophers'' are available in published form in a book of the same name. ''The Story of Thought'' (also published as ''The Story of Philosophy'') also covers the history of [[Western philosophy]]. |
| - | At Oxford, Magee had mixed with poets as well as politicians and in 1951 published a volume of verse through the [[Reginald Caton|Fortune Press]]. The publisher did not pay its writers and expected them to buy a certain number of copies themselves – a similar deal had been struck with such writers as [[Dylan Thomas]] and [[Philip Larkin]] for their first anthologies. The slim volume was dedicated to the memory of [[Richard Wagner]], with a quote from [[Rilke]]'s ''[[Duino Elegies]]'': ''... das Schöne ist nichts als des Schrecklichen Anfang, den wir noch grade ertragen'' ("... beauty is nothing but the beginning of terror, that we are still able to bear").<ref>Magee, B. (1951), ''Crucifixion and Other Poems'', London, Fortune Press</ref> Magee said later: "I'm rather ashamed of the poems now, although I have written poems since which I haven't published, which I secretly think are rather good. It has always been a dimension of what I do."<ref name="guardian.co.uk">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/jun/07/classicalmusicandopera.interviews|title=I think, therefore I write|date=6 June 2003|publisher=|accessdate=24 August 2016|via=The Guardian}}</ref> | + | ==Guests== |
| - | He spent a year studying philosophy at [[Yale University]] on a post-graduate fellowship.<ref>{{cite book|last=Magee|first=Bryan|title=Confessions of a Philosopher|year=1998|publisher=Random House|location=New York|isbn=0-375-50028-6|pages=122–138}}</ref> He had expected to hate America but found that he loved it. His deep admiration of the country's equality of opportunity was expressed in a swift series of books, ''Go West, Young Man'' (1958), ''The New Radicalism'' (1963) and ''The Democratic Revolution'' (1964).<ref name=times/> | + | |
| - | == Politician == | + | # [[Myles Burnyeat]] on [[Plato]] |
| - | {{Infobox officeholder | + | # [[Martha Nussbaum]] on [[Aristotle]] |
| - | |honorific-prefix = | + | # [[Anthony Kenny]] on [[Medieval Philosophy]] |
| - | |name = Bryan Magee | + | # [[Bernard Williams]] on [[Descartes]] |
| - | |office = [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] <br> for [[Leyton (UK Parliament constituency)|Leyton]] | + | # [[Anthony Quinton]] on [[Spinoza]] and [[Leibniz]] |
| - | |parliament = | + | # [[Michael Ayres]] on [[John Locke|Locke]] and [[George Berkeley|Berkeley]] |
| - | |majority = | + | # [[John Passmore]] on [[David Hume|Hume]] |
| - | |term_start = [[February 1974 United Kingdom general election|February 1974]] | + | # [[Geoffrey Warnock]] on [[Kant]] |
| - | |term_end = [[1983 United Kingdom general election|May 1983]] | + | # [[Peter Singer]] on [[Hegel]] and [[Marx]] |
| - | |predecessor = [[Patrick Gordon Walker]] | + | # [[Frederick Copleston]] on [[Schopenhauer]] |
| - | |successor = [[Harry Cohen]] | + | # [[J. P. Stern]] on [[Nietzsche]] |
| - | |nationality = British | + | # [[Hubert Dreyfus]] on [[Husserl]], [[Heidegger]] and Modern [[Existentialism]] |
| - | |party = [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] (1958–1982) <br> [[Social Democratic Party (UK)|Social Democratic Party]] (1982–1983) | + | # [[Sidney Morgenbesser]] on The American Pragmatists |
| - | |spouse = | + | # [[A. J. Ayer]] on [[Frege]], [[Bertrand Russell|Russell]] and Modern Logic |
| - | |religion = | + | # [[John Searle]] on [[Wittgenstein]] |
| - | |signature = | + | |
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| - | |website = | + | |
| - | |footnotes = | + | |
| - | }} | + | |
| - | He returned to Britain from Yale in 1958 with hopes of becoming a [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] Member of Parliament (MP). He twice stood unsuccessfully for [[Mid Bedfordshire (UK Parliament constituency)|Mid Bedfordshire]], at the [[1959 United Kingdom general election|1959 general election]] and the [[1960 Mid Bedfordshire by-election|1960 by-election]], and instead took a job presenting the [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] current affairs television programme ''[[This Week (1956 TV programme)|This Week]]''. He made documentary programmes about subjects of social concern such as prostitution, [[sexually transmitted diseases]], abortion and homosexuality (illegal in Britain at the time).<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> Interviewed in 2003, Magee said: <blockquote>British society was illiberal in a number of areas that are now taken for granted... [[Roy Jenkins]] changed them and he was bitterly opposed by the Tories. But if you were liberal with a small L there was a menu of social change and I believed very strongly in that whole liberal agenda.<ref name=classical>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/jun/07/classicalmusicandopera.interviews|title=Profile: Bryan Magee|first=|last=|date=7 June 2003|via=www.theguardian.com|accessdate=27 July 2019}}</ref></blockquote> | + | |
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| - | He was eventually elected MP for [[Leyton (UK Parliament constituency)|Leyton]] at the [[February 1974 United Kingdom general election|February 1974 general election]], but found himself out of tune with the Labour Party's traditional social democratic tendencies under [[Michael Foot]].<ref name=classical/> On 22 January 1982 he resigned the Labour whip and he subsequently (in March 1982) joined the defection of rightwing Labour MPs to the newly founded [[Social Democratic Party (UK)|Social Democratic Party]]. He lost his seat at the [[1983 United Kingdom general election|1983 general election]] and returned to writing and broadcasting which, indeed, he had continued during his parliamentary career.<ref name=classical/> | + | |
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| - | He returned to scholarship at Oxford, first as a fellow at [[Wolfson College, Oxford|Wolfson]], then at [[New College, Oxford|New College]]. He also found more time to write classical music reviews and worked on his own compositions. He admitted that, while his own work was "whistleable", it was also "inherently sentimental".<ref name=times/> | + | |
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| - | == Broadcaster and writer == | + | |
| - | Magee's most important influence in popular culture were his efforts to make philosophy accessible to the layman. In 1970–71, he presented a series for [[BBC Radio]] entitled ''Modern British Philosophy''. The series took the form of Magee in conversation with a number of contemporary British and American philosophers, discussing both their own work, the work of earlier 20th-century British philosophers (and [[Ludwig Wittgenstein]] and [[Karl Popper]]), and the relationship between philosophy and other fields such as religion and the arts."<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> The series began with an introductory conversation between Magee and British philosopher [[Anthony Quinton]]. Other programmes included discussions on [[Bertrand Russell]], [[G. E. Moore]] and [[J. L. Austin]], and the relationship between philosophy and religion, among others. The transcripts of the series are available in the book ''Modern British Philosophy''.<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> Magee's novel ''Facing Death'', published in 1977, was originally written under the title ''Love Story''.<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> | + | |
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| - | In 1978, Magee presented 15 dialogues with noted philosophers for [[BBC Television]] in a series called ''[[Men of Ideas]]''. Following an "Introduction to Philosophy", presented by Magee in discussion with [[Isaiah Berlin]], Magee discussed topics like [[Marxist philosophy]], the [[Frankfurt School]], the ideas of [[Chomsky]] and modern [[Existentialism]] in subsequent episodes. Transcripts of the dialogues within the ''Men of Ideas'' series are available in published form in the book, ''Talking Philosophy''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/1c357f32263e4403aa39d79161da5bd2|title=Men of Ideas|date=30 March 1978|issue=2837|pages=57|via=BBC Genome}}</ref> | + | |
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| - | Another BBC television series, ''[[The Great Philosophers]]'', followed in 1987. In this series, Magee discussed the major historical figures of Western philosophy with fifteen contemporary philosophers. The series covered the philosophies of [[Plato]], [[Aristotle]], and [[Descartes]], among others, ending with a discussion with [[John Searle]] on the philosophy of Wittgenstein. Transcripts of ''The Great Philosophers'' are available in published form in a book of the same name. ''The Story of Thought'' (also published as ''The Story of Philosophy'') also covers the history of Western philosophy.<ref name=times>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/bryan-magee-obituary-3xdl66lc8|title=Bryan Magee obituary|date=27 July 2019|via=www.thetimes.co.uk}}</ref> | + | |
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| - | For many years Magee undertook roles on boards and committees. In 1994 he dramatically resigned as chairman of the [[Arts Council of Great Britain|Arts Council]] music panel when pressured to make cuts.<ref name=classical/> Magee could be both arrogant and vain, however, and was particularly dismissive of Christians, claiming that their religion gave them "false selfconsolation".<ref name=times/> | + | |
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| - | == Later work and interest in Wagner == | + | |
| - | In 1997 Magee's ''Confessions of a Philosopher'' was published, which essentially offered an introduction to philosophy in autobiographical form. The book was involved in a [[libel]] lawsuit as a result of Magee repeating the rumour that [[Ralph Schoenman]], a controversial associate of Bertrand Russell during the philosopher's final decade, had been planted by the [[CIA]] in an effort to discredit Russell. Schoenman successfully sued Magee for libel in the UK, with the result that the first printing of the British edition of the book was pulped.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/nov/11/paulbaldwin|title=Bertrand Russell aide wins libel damages|first=Paul|last=Baldwin|date=11 November 1999|via=www.theguardian.com}}</ref> A second defamation suit, filed in California against [[Random House]], was settled in 2001. The allegations were expunged by settlement, and a new edition was issued and provided to more than 700 academic and public libraries.<ref>{{cite web|last=Staff|title=libraryjournal.com|url=http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA156369.html|work=Schoenman Settles Defamation Suit Against Random|accessdate=31 July 2011|deadurl=yes|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120617165923/http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA156369.html|archivedate=17 June 2012|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In ''Confessions of a Philosopher'', Magee charts his own philosophical development in an autobiographical context. He also emphasizes the importance of [[Schopenhauer]]'s philosophy as a serious attempt to solve philosophical problems. In addition to this, he launches a critique of [[analytic philosophy]], particularly in its linguistic form over three chapters, contesting its fundamental principles and lamenting its influence.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/confessions-of-a-philosopher-bryan-magee/1123744932|title=Confessions of a Philosopher: A Personal Journey Through Western Philosophy from Plato to Popper|Hardcover|first=Barnes &|last=Noble|website=Barnes & Noble}}</ref> | + | |
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| - | His book, ''The Philosophy of Schopenhauer'' (first published in 1983 and revised in 1997)<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/jun/07/classicalmusicandopera.interviews|title=Profile: Bryan Magee|last=Staff|first=Guardian|date=2003-06-07|work=The Guardian|access-date=2019-03-09|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> remains one of the most substantial and wide-ranging treatments of Schopenhauer; it is particularly appreciated for its several essay-appendices in which Magee assesses in-depth his influence on Wittgenstein, Wagner and other creative writers. He also addresses Schopenhauer's thoughts on homosexuality and the influence of [[Buddhism]] on his philosophy. He regards the work as the closest to his "academic magnum opus".<ref name=":0" /> | + | |
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| - | Magee had a particular interest in the life, thought and music of Richard Wagner and wrote two notable books on the composer and his world, ''Aspects of Wagner'' (1968; rev. 1988), and ''The Tristan Chord: Wagner and Philosophy'' (2001).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2001/oct/13/highereducation.news|title=Review: Wagner and Philosophy by Brian Magee|first=Nicholas|last=Lezard|date=13 October 2001|via=www.theguardian.com}}</ref> In ''Aspects of Wagner'' Magee "outlines the range and depth of Wagner's achievement, and shows how his sensational and erotic music expresses the repressed and highly charged contents of the psyche. He also examines Wagner's detailed stage directions, and the prose works in which he formulated his ideas, and sheds interesting new light on his [[anti-semitism]]." The revised edition includes a fresh chapter on "Wagner as Music".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://global.oup.com/academic/product/aspects-of-wagner-9780192840127?cc=gb&lang=en&#|title=Aspects of Wagner|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=1 September 1988|publisher=Oxford University Press|via=Oxford University Press}}</ref> Magee was also an admirer of the philosophy of Karl Popper, on whom he wrote an introduction in the [[Fontana Modern Masters]] series (1997).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.criticalrationalism.net/2010/03/25/magee-on-popper/|title=Magee on Popper|date=25 March 2010}}</ref> | + | |
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| - | In 2016, approaching his 86th birthday, Magee had his book ''Ultimate Questions'' published by [[Princeton University]]. Writing in ''[[The Independent]]'', [[Julian Baggini]] said "Magee doesn't always match his clarity of expression with rigour of argument, sometimes ignoring his own principle that the feeling 'Yes, surely this must be right' is 'not a validation, not even a credential'. But this can be excused. [[Plato]] and [[Aristotle]] claimed that philosophy begins with wonder. Magee is proof that for some, the wonder never dies, it only deepens."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/ultimate-questions-by-bryan-magee-book-review-a-wonderful-wonder-full-life-a6950296.html|title=Ultimate Questions by Bryan Magee: A wonderful, wonder-full life|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=24 March 2016| accessdate=24 August 2016}}</ref> | + | |
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| - | In 2018 Magee, who was then living in one room in a nursing hospital in Oxford, was interviewed by [[Jason Cowley]] of ''[[New Statesman]]'' and discussed his life and his 2016 book ''Ultimate Questions''. Magee said that he believed he lacked originality and, until ''Ultimate Questions'', had struggled to make an original contribution to philosophy, saying: <blockquote>Popper had this originality, [[Bertrand Russell|Russell]] had it, and [[Albert Einstein|Einstein]] had it in spades. Einstein created a way of seeing things which transformed the way we see the world and the way we even understand such fundamental things as time and space. And I fundamentally understand that I could never do that, never. I wish I was in that class – not because I want to be a clever chap but because I want to do things that are at a much better level than I've done them.</blockquote> He explained that he followed the news and politics closely and that he considered the [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|vote for Brexit]] to have been a "historic mistake".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk/2018/04/even-old-age-philosopher-bryan-magee-remains-wonder-struck-ultimate-questions|title=Even in old age, philosopher Bryan Magee remains wonder-struck by the ultimate questions|website=www.newstatesman.com|accessdate=3 June 2019}}</ref> | + | |
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| - | == Personal life and death == | + | |
| - | In 1953, Magee was appointed to a teaching job in Sweden and while there met Ingrid Söderlund, a [[pharmacist]] in the university laboratory. They married and had one daughter, Gunnela and, in time, three grandchildren. Magee later said: <blockquote>The marriage broke up pretty quickly and it was a fairly disastrous period of my life. I came back to Oxford as a postgraduate. But since then Sweden has been a part of my life. I go there every year and my daughter visits me. I always assumed that sooner or later I'd get married again but it never quite happened, although I had some very long relationships. And now I don't want to get married again. I like the freedom.<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/></blockquote> | + | |
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| - | His autobiography, ''Clouds of Glory: A Hoxton Childhood'', won the [[J. R. Ackerley Prize for Autobiography]] in 2004. | + | |
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| - | Magee died on 26 July 2019, at the age of 89, at St Luke's Hospital in [[Headington]], Oxford. He is survived by his Swedish daughter Gunnela and her children and grandchildren.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://jonathanwolff.wordpress.com/2019/07/26/bryan-magee-by-henry-hardy/|title=Bryan Magee, by Henry Hardy|date=26 July 2019}}</ref><ref name=obit>{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2019/07/26/bryan-magee-author-broadcaster-academic-unsurpassed-ability/|title=Bryan Magee, author, broadcaster, MP and academic with an unsurpassed ability to render complex philosophical ideas easily digestible – obituary|last=Obituaries|first=Telegraph|date=2019-07-26|work=The Telegraph|access-date=2019-07-26|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> | + | |
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| - | Interviewed in 2003, Oxford contemporary [[William Rees-Mogg]] recalled "we never knew which way Bryan would jump. And as his life later demonstrated, there was always a question of whether he was basically at heart an intellectual or someone interested in public life. So it wasn't a surprise that he went into public life, but the intellectual was really the predominant element in his personality and the books seemed to represent the real Bryan more than the political activity did."<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> | + | |
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| - | Writing in ''The Article'' following Magee's death, David Herman said:<blockquote>Magee was clear, calm and made the hardest of ideas seem accessible, without ever talking down to his audience or being simplistic. Above all, he knew his subject, covering a huge range of ideas over a vast period of western thought. The interview with Isaiah Berlin, “An Introduction to Philosophy”, is a masterpiece: Berlin at his peak, in full flow, is exhilarating.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thearticle.com/bryan-magee-a-tribute|title=Bryan Magee: a tribute|date=26 July 2019|website=TheArticle}}</ref></blockquote> | + | |
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| - | ==Bibliography== | + | |
| - | <small>Source:<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://worldcat.org/identities/lccn-n50037476/|title=Magee, Bryan [WorldCat Identities]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://supermanmockups.com/author/|title=Bryan Magee's Books|date=22 March 2019}}</ref></small> | + | |
| - | * ''Crucifixion and Other Poems'', 1951, Fortune Press<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Crucifixion.html?id=vHvjMgEACAAJ&redir_esc=y|title=Crucifixion: And Other Poems|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 1954|publisher=Fortune Press|via=Google Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Go West, Young Man'', Eyre And Spottiswoode, 1958, {{oclc|6884140}} | + | |
| - | * ''To Live in Danger'', Hutchinson, 1960 (softcover Random House {{ISBN|0-09-001700-5}})<ref name="guardian.co.uk"/> | + | |
| - | * ''The New Radicalism'', Secker & Warburg, 1962, ASIN B0006D7RZW<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/new-radicalism-by-brian-magee-new-york-st-martins-press-1963-pp-238-500/6B0C7CD749DE958FFC8B20D610C28CA4|title=The New Radicalism. By Brian Magee. (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1963. Pp. 238. $5.00.)|first=Anthony|last=King|date=27 March 1964|journal=American Political Science Review|volume=58|issue=1|pages=161–161|via=Cambridge Core|doi=10.1017/S0003055400288710}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''The Democratic Revolution'', Bodley Head, 1964, {{ISBN|978-0-370-00314-6}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/724284|title=The democratic revolution|first=Bryan Edgar|last=Magee|date=27 July 1964|publisher=Bodley Head|via=National Library of Australia (new catalog)}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Towards 2000: The world we make'', Macdonald & Co, 1965, ASIN B0000CMK0Y<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Towards_2000.html?id=YGY8AQAAIAAJ&redir_esc=y|title=Towards 2000: The World We Make|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 1965|publisher=Macdonald|via=Google Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''One in Twenty: A Study of Homosexuality in Men and Women'', Stein and Day, 1966. {{oclc|654348375}} (later published as ''The Gays Among Us'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/bryan-magee-4/one-in-twenty/|title=ONE IN TWENTY by Bryan Magee | Kirkus Reviews|via=www.kirkusreviews.com}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''The Television Interviewer'', Macdonald, 1966, ASIN B0000CN1D4 (memoir)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.openculture.com/2019/07/bryan-magee-rip-presents-in-depth-uncut-tv-conversations-with-famous-philosophers.html|title=Bryan Magee (RIP) Presents In-Depth, Uncut TV Conversations With Famous Philosophers|first1=in Philosophy ||last1=July 26th|first2=2019 1|last2=Comment}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Modern British Philosophy'', Secker and Warburg, 1971, {{ISBN|0-436-27104-4}}; Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|0-19-283047-3}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://dailynous.com/2019/07/26/bryan-magee-1930-2019/|title=Bryan Magee (1930-2019)|first=Justin|last=Weinberg|date=26 July 2019|website=Daily Nous}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Karl Popper'', Penguin, 1973, {{ISBN|0-670-01967-4}} (Viking Press, {{ISBN|0-670-41174-4}}; later titled ''Philosophy and the Real World'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Karl_Popper.html?id=ge7WAAAAMAAJ&redir_esc=y|title=Karl Popper|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 1973|publisher=Viking Press|via=Google Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Facing Death'', William Kimber & Co Ltd, 1977, {{ISBN|0-7183-0135-8}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/facing-death-a-novel/oclc/3771699|title=Facing death|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 1977|publisher=Kimber|via=Open WorldCat}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Men of Ideas: Some Creators of Contemporary Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1982 (reprint; first published 1978), {{ISBN|0-19-283034-1}}<ref>{{cite journal |title=Men of Ideas (Book Review) | + | |
| - | |last=Snelgrove |first=David |journal=Journal of Thought |location=Fayetteville, Ark |volume=15:1 |date=Spring 1980 |page=103}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Men_of_Ideas.html?id=-UqNQgAACAAJ&redir_esc=y|title=Men of Ideas: Some Creators of Contemporary Philosophy|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 1982|publisher=Oxford University Press|via=Google Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Philosophy and the Real World: An Introduction to Karl Popper'', Open Court Publishing, 1985, {{ISBN|0-87548-436-0}} (originally published as ''Karl Popper'') | + | |
| - | * ''Aspects of Wagner'', Secker and Warburg, 1968; rev. 2nd ed. Oxford University Press, 1988, {{ISBN|0-19-284012-6}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.counter-currents.com/2013/03/bryan-magees-aspects-of-wagner/|title=Bryan Magee’s Aspects of Wagner|website=www.counter-currents.com}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''On Blindness: Letters between Bryan Magee and Martin Milligan'', Oxford University Press, 1996, {{ISBN|0-19-823543-7}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lrb.co.uk/v19/n01/ian-hacking/the-passing-show|title=The Passing Show|first=Ian|last=Hacking|date=2 January 1997|pages=9–10|via=London Review of Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''The Philosophy of Schopenhauer'', Oxford University Press, 1997 (reprint; first published 1983), {{ISBN|0-19-823722-7}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://philpapers.org/rec/MAGTPO-2|title=The Philosophy of Schopenhauer|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 1997|publisher=Oxford University Press|via=PhilPapers}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-philosophy-of-schopenhauer-bryan-magee/prod9780198237235.html|title=The Philosophy of Schopenhauer|via=www.booktopia.com.au}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Popper'', [[Fontana Modern Masters]], 1973, reprinted 1997, {{ISBN|0-00-686008-7}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=k9I9zY3wHRcC|title=Popper|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 1974|publisher=Psychology Press|via=Google Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Confessions of a Philosopher'', Random House, 1997, reprinted 1998, {{ISBN|0-375-50028-6}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/book-review-onward-and-upward-confessions-of-a-philosopher-by-bryan-magee-weidenfeld-nicolson-pounds-1254515.html|title=Book review / Onward and upward; Confessions of a Philosopher by Bryan|date=7 June 1997|website=The Independent}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20708808?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents |title=Reviewed Work: Confessions of a Philosopher: A Journey through Western Theism by Bryan Magee |publisher=University of Illinois Press on behalf of the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy |year=1999 |accessdate=17 July 2019}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''The Story of Thought: The Essential Guide to the History of Western Philosophy'', The Quality Paperback Bookclub, 1998, {{ISBN|0-7894-4455-0}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=rh9LVBK0fdEC&q=%22bryan+magee%22+%22'The+Story+of+Thought%22&dq=%22bryan+magee%22+%22'The+Story+of+Thought%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjRpa6tg9XjAhUJTsAKHePADekQ6AEIKTAA|title=The story of thought|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=1 January 1998|publisher=The quality paperback bookclub|via=Google Books}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Sight Unseen'', Phoenix House, 1998, {{ISBN|0-7538-0503-0}} | + | |
| - | * ''The Great Philosophers: An Introduction to Western Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 2000, {{ISBN|0-19-289322-X}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://philpapers.org/rec/MAGTGP|title=The Great Philosophers: An Introduction to Western Philosophy|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 2000|publisher=Oxford University Press|via=PhilPapers}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Wagner and Philosophy'', Penguin, 2001, {{ISBN|0-14-029519-4}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://philosophynow.org/issues/34/Wagner_and_Philosophy_by_Bryan_Magee|title=Wagner and Philosophy by Bryan Magee | Issue 34 | Philosophy Now|website=philosophynow.org}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''The Story of Philosophy'', Dorling Kindersley, 2001, {{ISBN|0-7894-7994-X}}<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/31688566/The_story_of_philosophy.pdf|title=The story of philosophy.pdf|first=Muhammad|last=Ali|via=www.academia.edu}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''The Tristan Chord: Wagner and Philosophy'', Owl Books, 2002 (reprint; first published 2001), {{ISBN|0-8050-7189-X}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.operatoday.com/content/2005/01/magee_the_trist.php|title=Opera Today : MAGEE: THE TRISTAN CHORD — Wagner and Philosophy|website=www.operatoday.com}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Clouds of Glory'', Pimlico, 2004, {{ISBN|0-7126-3560-2}} – winner of the [[J. R. Ackerley Prize for Autobiography]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2003/aug/16/featuresreviews.guardianreview7|title=Review: Clouds of Glory by Bryan Magee|first=Arnold|last=Wesker|date=15 August 2003|via=www.theguardian.com}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Growing up in a War'', Pimlico, 2007, {{ISBN|1-84595-087-9}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/growing-up-in-a-war/oclc/75713988|title=Growing up in a war|first=Bryan|last=Magee|date=27 July 2007|publisher=Pimlico|via=Open WorldCat}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Ultimate Questions'', Princeton University Press, 2016, {{ISBN|978-0-691-17065-7}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://standpointmag.co.uk/issues/march-2016/books-march-2016-anthony-kenny-bryan-magee-ultimate-questions-philosophy/|title=Even Men Of Ideas Are Mortal | Anthony Kenny|date=23 February 2016|website=Standpoint}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/ultimate-questions-by-bryan-magee-book-review-a-wonderful-wonder-full-life-a6950296.html|title=Ultimate Questions by Bryan Magee: A wonderful, wonder-full life|date=24 March 2016|website=The Independent}}</ref> | + | |
| - | * ''Making the Most of It'', Studio 28, 2018, {{ISBN|978-1980636137}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.drb.ie/essays/philosopher-in-a-hurry|title=Philosopher in a Hurry|website=www.drb.ie}}</ref> | + | |
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The Great Philosophers was a 1987 television series presented by Bryan Magee. There were 15 episodes, in each of which Magee interviewed a noted philosopher.
In this series, Magee discussed the major historical figures of Western philosophy with fifteen contemporary philosophers. The series covered the philosophies of Plato, Aristotle, and Descartes, among others, ending with a discussion with John Searle on the philosophy of Wittgenstein. Transcripts of The Great Philosophers are available in published form in a book of the same name. The Story of Thought (also published as The Story of Philosophy) also covers the history of Western philosophy.
Guests
- Myles Burnyeat on Plato
- Martha Nussbaum on Aristotle
- Anthony Kenny on Medieval Philosophy
- Bernard Williams on Descartes
- Anthony Quinton on Spinoza and Leibniz
- Michael Ayres on Locke and Berkeley
- John Passmore on Hume
- Geoffrey Warnock on Kant
- Peter Singer on Hegel and Marx
- Frederick Copleston on Schopenhauer
- J. P. Stern on Nietzsche
- Hubert Dreyfus on Husserl, Heidegger and Modern Existentialism
- Sidney Morgenbesser on The American Pragmatists
- A. J. Ayer on Frege, Russell and Modern Logic
- John Searle on Wittgenstein
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "The Great Philosophers" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
